Out with old and in with new for Ilfracombe's inshore lifeboat
ILFRACOMBE S inshore lifeboat Deborah Brown has signed off in style after carrying out its final rescue. She has been replaced by the Deborah Brown 2, an upgraded and faster model with a 50 horsepower engine reaching a top speed of 25 knots plus the lates
ILFRACOMBE'S inshore lifeboat Deborah Brown has signed off in style after carrying out its final rescue.
She has been replaced by the Deborah Brown 2, an upgraded and faster model with a 50 horsepower engine reaching a top speed of 25 knots plus the latest rescue and navigation equipment.
The older model went on its final shout in tandem with the town's all weather lifeboat Spirit of Derbyshire, after two inflatable dinghies were reported on the beach at Scillery Sands near Lynmouth.
The RNLI said a family had abandoned a planned overnight camping trip and left the boats on the beach. The coastguard had advised the owner to leave the boats where they were due to the weather conditions, but he felt he should go ahead and recover them.
While he was attempting to take one of the boats out into deeper water the engine had failed to start and the boat was washed back onto the beach.
Rescue services decided the inflatables should be recovered, in case they washed out to sea and sparked off a false alarm elsewhere.
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Four Ilfracombe lifeboat crewmen had to scramble ashore to attach lines to both boats, which were pulled out through the surf and tied alongside the Spirit of Derbyshire before being towed into Lynmouth and handed over to their owner.
The new inshore boat is also a D Class as was her predecessor and the crew have spent some time training with the Deborah Brown 2 before it was put into service on
The older Deborah Brown could be assigned to the RNLI Relief Fleet, helping out as required at lifeboat stations around the country, be turned into a training boat or even sold on.
