North Berwick RNLI respond to 31 incidents in 2023

The charity, which celebrates its 200th year in 2024, relies on volunteers to run the lifesaving service in North Berwick. Ricky Martin, Lifeboat Operations Manager said; “Our crew are enormously dedicated, spending many hours each week, training to a high standard, whilst also maintaining our lifesaving equipment so that we can be ready to respond at a moment’s notice.”

“It’s not only our lifeboat and shore crew who put the hours in though. We have around sixty volunteers at the station, about two thirds of them volunteering on the fundraising committee or in the much loved RNLI shop.”

“Incredibly, last year our wee shop was visited by over ten thousand people, and sold over one hundred pairs of kids yellow wellies!”

“We’re incredibly proud of our shop volunteers headed by Jill Sim. The funds they raise, alongside our fundraising committee are vital to supporting the running of the station. As always we owe the local community and visitors to North Berwick a massive thank you for their support.”

Incidents responded to by the crew in North Berwick included numerous searches, one covering 35 nautical miles of water, rescues of kayakers and stand up paddleboards caught out in offshore winds shore side medical incidents and 6 call outs in the first full week of the school summer holidays.

With demand for its lifesaving services at a high, the charity is putting out its own ‘Mayday’ call, urging members of the local community to take part in the Mayday Mile - taking on the challenge of covering a mile a day for the month of May. All money raised will help to provide the charity’s vital lifesaving service, such as the training and equipment that is needed to keep its lifesavers safe, while they risk their own lives to save others.

Funds raised will help support the charity’s vital lifesaving work, including the provision of important training and kit for the volunteer lifeboat crews who readily risk their own lives to save others whenever the call for help comes in.

Notes to Editors

• It costs £1,400 a year to train each crew member in the lifesaving skills they need to answer the call for help.
• 97% of the RNLI’s front line lifesavers are volunteers including over 5,700 lifeboat crew members.
• In 2022 it cost the RNLI £188M to run it’s charitable lifesaving service, 6 in 10 of the lifeboat launches were funded by generous supporters leaving the RNLI a gift in their will.
• Library footage and images of North Berwick RNLI are available on request, please use the contacts below.

Media contacts
Matthew Gibbons, Deputy Lifeboat Press Officer, North Berwick, [email protected]
Natasha Bennett, RNLI Regional Media Officer for Scotland, 07826 900639, [email protected]
Martin Macnamara, RNLI Regional Media Manager for Scotland, 07920 365929, [email protected]
24 hour RNLI Central Press Office, 01202 336789 or email [email protected]

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 142,700 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.