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Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Woodhall Spa Branch
Registered Charity Number 209603
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What is The Royal National Lifeboat Institution?
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a registered charity that saves lives at sea. It provides, on call, the 24-hour service necessary to cover search and rescue requirements to 50 miles out from the coast of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, and a beach rescue service on 43 beaches in the south west of England. The RNLI depends entirely on voluntary contributions and legacies for its income.
There are 231 lifeboat stations (this includes a new stations at Wexford and Kinsale in the Republic of Ireland, which are under evaluation) strategically placed around the UK and Republic of Ireland.
The direct costs of launching a lifeboat are relatively small (service payments and fuel). But if all the other running costs of a lifeboat station are taken into account - ie stores, maintenance of lifeboats and lifeboat stations - the average cost of launching a lifeboat is about £5,800 for an all-weather boat and about £2,200 for an inflatable. These figures do not include the substantial cost of depreciation of the lifeboat.
Lifeboatmen and women are volunteers. There is a full-time mechanic in each all-weather lifeboat crew. The volunteers receive a few pounds, each time they are called out, to cover their expenses.
There are more than 4,600 volunteer crew members throughout the country, including over 300 women.
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© Brian Clifford (July 2004)
Lincolnshire, England
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