This article is from page 19 of the 2009-09-01 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 19 JPG
THE ROYAL National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has confirmed that the only coastal RNLI station in County Clare will receive a new lifeboat next year. On his last visit to Kilrush before he retires, the Chief Executive of the RNLI Mr Andrew Freemantle confirmed he has sanc- tioned the purchase and delivery of a new Atlantic 85 B Class lifeboat for the RNLI station at Kilrush.
During a recent tour of the station, Mr Freemantle confirmed that next June, the latest generation of inshore lifeboat will be delivered to the vol- untary crew in Kilrush. The Atlantic 85 (Rigid Inflatable boat) RIB is not only bigger and more powerful than Kilrush’s existing RIB but it is also fitted with the latest Search and Res- cue technology and instrumentation, equipping the service to continue saving lives into the next generation. Kilrush will be one of only two sta- tions in Ireland and the UK which will receive such an upgrade next
year.
Following the construction of a new station in 1996, an Atlantic 21B Class lifeboat was placed on tempo- rary duty at the Kilrush station how- ever it was replaced by a new Atlan- tic 75 lifeboat the following October. This vessel will now be replaced by a
new Atlantic 85 in 2010.
Kilrush Lifeboat Operations Man- ager John Lamb said, “This is a great vote of confidence in the crew here at Kilrush. It shows that we are do- ing what is being asked of us and that we are being rewarded by being en- trusted by this the latest in lifeboat
technology and development”
Lifeboat Training Officer Pauline Dunleavy added, “It is paramount that those who give of themselves by volunteering as a lifeboat crew mem- ber are equipped with the best and the latest equipment. RNLI crews are trained to the highest standards to answer the call of those in most dif- ficulty at sea. It is only fitting that we have the best means of answering that call. The Atlantic 85 which is coming to Kilrush next year is just that.”
The crucial task of maintaining the lifeboat in Kilrush falls on me- chanic Martin Brew who said, “This is a bigger boat allowing us to carry more equipment, more crew mem- bers and more casualties. It is also a more powerful boat, giving greater endurance time allowing us to go further with greater speed while not compromising the safety of crew or those we rescue.”