Beginning to look like a lifeboat station

Monday 31 Jan 2022

With some cold and inclement days but almost as many mild and sunny ones, January has seen something of a transformation and the new building, both inside and out, is beginning to look more like an actual lifeboat station and less like the outline of one.

Window units have been delivered and fitted to the building, replacing polythene sheeting. Additionally, thick insulation and then a black protective thermal layer have been added externally, making the building look more complete and quite smart... although this isn't the final appearance as the exterior cladding and roof panels are still to come.

Inside, many of the walls have been boarded out and the internal scaffolding removed. Now with white walls up to the timber roof, the boat hall is beginning to look the part. Much work has also been done fitting plant and wiring as work progresses. The temporary staircase remains for now and has been joined by temporary handrails around both the boarding platform and public viewing platform.

The building site had a VIP visitor just after Christmas when some of the crew welcomed the station's former 'Hon Sec' Richard Cracknell. Richard was shown around by Chris Hardy, our current Lifeboat Operations Manager, equivalent to the Honory Secretary position held by Richard from 1994 to 2003.

The new boathouse will continue to make quick progress next month with doors due to arrive on site and be fitted soon. It is still envisaged that the building will be finished before the end of May, slightly over the original schedule, and that our new Shannon class lifeboat RNLB 13-46 'Duke of Edinburgh', now being built at the All-Weather Lifeboat Centre in Poole, will arrive home in the Autumn.