Plymouth Lifeboat Station
Plymouth Lifeboat Station is the base for Royal National Lifeboat Institution search and rescue operations at Plymouth in England. The first lifeboat was stationed in the city in the early 1800s. The station moved to its present site at Millbay Docks in 1992, a Grade II-listed three-storey tower. Since 2003 it has operated a all weather boat along with an inshore lifeboat.
History
Plymouth was one of the towns that received one of the Lloyds lifeboats in the first decade of the nineteenth century, but it never saw service. In 1825 a new lifeboat was provided by the new National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck, but this too saw no use.A new lifeboat station was established in Plymouth in 1862 with a lifeboat house on the West Wharf of the outer basin of Millbay Docks. This was replaced in 1897 by a new boathouse at the Camber with its own launching slip which allowed the lifeboat to get to sea more quickly. The station's first motor lifeboat was a which had to be kept moored afloat due to its length. A new station was built on the Princess Royal Pier in 1979 and a new mooring was provided alongside. From 1988 until 1992 the lifeboat was moored in Sutton Harbour while the area around the Princess Royal Pier was redevloped as a marina, but it then returned to Millbay.
An Inshore Rescue Boat was first stationed at Plymouth in May 1967. After a year when this was a D class inflatable, larger ILBs were provided. Initially in the form of and lifeboats, but since 1983 by s.
Service awards
A number of rescues carried out by the station's lifeboats have been recognised by letters, certificates and medals from the RNLI management, including three that resulted in a total of four bronze medals.- Coxswain Walter Crowther was awarded a medal after the Robert and Marcella Beck was called out on 13 January 1942 to a Sunderland flying boat of the Royal Australian Air Force which had been blown onto rocks in a storm. The lifeboat crew managed to get a rope across to the flying boat and towed her and her crew to safety.
- Another medal was awarded to Coxswain John Dare "for his courage, determination and excellent seamanship" on 16 January 1974. A Danish coaster, the Merc Enterprise had capsized south of Rame Head. The lifeboat Thomas Forehead and Mary Rowse fought through hurricane-force winds to reach the casualty. A helicopter managed to winch seven people out of the water while the lifeboat searched for other survivors but failed to find any.
- The third bronze medal rescue involved the Thomas Forehead and Mary Rowse II on 15 February 1978. The Elly Gerda ran aground near Looe in a Force 8 storm. The lifeboat managed to rescue two of the trawler's crew but the heavy seas then washed the trawler off the rocks. The lifeboat escorted it back into harbour and then returned to Plymouth, where it had left its berth nearly 14 hours earlier. The RNLI awarded medals to both the Coxswain, Patrick Marshall, and the Mechanic, Cyril Alcock, "for their courage, determination and seamanship".
Facilities
Crew facilities and storage are in the old Customs Office on the quay close to the moorings. This is a Grade II Listed building which was erected in 1850 to the design of George Wightwick. It is built from granite, octagonal in plan and three storeys high. This gave the customs officers all-round views of the area.
Area of operation
The RNLI aims to reach any casualty up to from its stations, and within two hours in good weather. To do this the Severn class lifeboat at Plymouth has an operating range of and a top speed of. The can go out in Force 7 winds and can operate at up to for 2½ hours. Adjacent all-weather lifeboats are stationed at to the east, and to the west. There is also an ILB at between Plymouth and Fowey.Current lifeboats
- 17–35 Sybil Mullen Glover – on station since 2003
- B775 Millennium Forester – on station 2004–05 and again since 2006
Former lifeboats
Pulling and sailing lifeboats
Motor lifeboats
Inshore lifeboats
| Op. No. | Name | Built | At Plymouth | Class | Type |
| D-130 | – | 1967–1968 | D | Zodiac 3 | |
| 18-01 | – | 1967 | 1968–1972 | A | |
| A-509 | – | 1972 | 1972–1977 | A | |
| A-507 | – | 1973 | 1977–1983 | A | McLachlan |
| B-775 | Millennium Forester | 2001 | 2004–2005 | B | |
| B-700 | Susan Peacock | 1993 | 2005–2006 | B | Atlantic 75 |
| B-769 | Coventry and Warwickshire | 2001 | 2005–2006 | B | Atlantic 75 |