Clifden Lifeboat Station is located on The Quay at Clifden, a town on the northern shore of the Owenglin River, where it runs into Clifden Bay, in the Connemara region of County Galway, on the east coast of Ireland.
The station currently operates 13-43 St Christopher (ON 1350), a Shannon-class All-weather lifeboat, on station since 2022, and a B-class (Atlantic 85) Inshore lifeboat, Joyce King (B-869), on station since 2013.[2]
History
Ever since its founding in 1824, the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS), later to become the RNLI in 1854, would award medals for deeds of gallantry at sea, even if no lifeboats were involved.
On 20 March 1847, the brig Halifax, on passage from Peru to Cork, was driven ashore from her anchorage in Ardbear Bay, near Clifden. The H.M. Coastguard chief boatman put out with four other men, and in three trips, rescued the Master and 16 crew. Charles Mills was awarded the RNIPLS Silver Medal.[3][4]
It would be another 141 years before a lifeboat station was established at Clifden. A C-class (Zodiac Grand Raid IV) was placed on station on 15 March 1988, on a one-year evaluation period. The C-class was a development of the D-class lifeboats introduced in 1963, but fitted with two engines giving a higher top speed. Being towed by the station's Landrover, the boat could be launched from a number of sites. The station was declared permanent in March 1989, but at the time, like many other inshore stations, was initially operational only during the summer months.[1][2][5]
Demolition of a residential building on The Quay in 1992 provided a location to construct a station building, capable of housing the small inshore lifeboat and launch vehicle, along with a workshop and crew facilities.[1]
The station was allocated a larger B-class (Atlantic 21) Inshore lifeboat in 1997, and the relief lifeboat John Batstone (B-575), previously at Peel, was placed on service temporarily on 22 May. The lifeboat was moored afloat until a new purpose built boathouse could be constructed at Clifden Bay beach, located 1 mile (1.6km) to the west of the Inshore boathouse.[1][2]
1998 saw many changes at Clifden. With the B-class lifeboat on station, there was no need for the twin-engined C-class (Zodiac Grand Raid IV), which was withdrawn. It was replaced with a smaller D-class (EA16) in May 1998. It was the fourth lifeboat funded by the customers of the Fleece Inn at Holme, Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, others being located at Filey and Montrose, and was named Holme Team IV (D-525). The new boathouse was completed in August, and a new Talus MB-764 County launch and recovery tractor arrived on station.[1][2][5]
The new B-class (Atlantic 75) lifeboat Benjamin Dowing Fairbridge (B-751) was placed on service on 12 January 1999.[1][2]
In 2000, the crew of two, a dog, and the yacht Cicada were saved, a service carried in very strong winds off Fahy Point. On 28 December 2007, four people were saved, and another two rescued, after their currach capsized. On each occasion, Helm Bernard Whelan received "A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution".[1]
The latest version of the Atlantic-class lifeboat, the B-class (Atlantic 85), replaced Benjamin Dowing Fairbridge at Clifden on 26 June 2013. At a ceremony on Saturday 9 November, and funded from the bequest of Mr John Charles King, in memory of his late wife, the new lifeboat was named Joyce King (B-869).[6]
Following a coastal review by the RNLI, it was decided to place an All-weather lifeboat at Clifden, initially for a trial and evaluation period of one-year. The 22-year-old Mersey-class All-weather lifeboat 12-27 Pride and Spirit (ON 1186) arrived on station on 6 August 2014.[7]
12-27 Pride and Spirit (ON 1186) was replaced by another temporary Mersey-class lifeboat in 2016, 12-33 Fisherman's Friend (ON 1192). It was announced that an All-weather lifeboat was permanently assigned to Clifden.[2][8]
The D-class (IB1) lifeboat Gráinne Uaile was replaced in 2017. The new lifeboat was the gift on Mr Peter Ross, in memory of his late wife. Mr Ross handed over the lifeboat to the care of Clifden RNLI at a naming ceremony on Saturday 21 October, when the boat was named Celia Mary (D-815). The boat would later be transferred to the relief fleet, when the Clifden D-class was withdrawn in 2019.[9]
Yet another temporary lifeboat from the relief fleet was assigned to Clifden in 2019, but this time, it was a state-of-the-art €2.4 million Shannon-class lifeboat, 13-21 Brianne Aldington (ON 1328), which arrived on station on 17 August.[10]
Clifden received their permanent All-weather lifeboat on 15 May 2022. Even before arriving on station, the lifeboat had carried out its first call, whilst on passage to Ireland, responding to a Coastguard alert, and escorting a small fishing vessel into Newlyn. The lifeboat had been funded in two ways, firstly, from the legacy of Mr Christopher Harris, and secondly, from the donations received to place 10,000 names within the numbers on the boat, known as the "Launch-a-Memory" campaign.[11][12]
At a ceremony on Saturday 22 April 2023, the lifeboat was handed to the care of the RNLI by Phillipa Harris, daughter of Christopher Harris, and then formally named 13-43 St Christopher (ON 1350).[13]
Since its inception, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has provided lifeboats to lifeboat stations in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Blyth Lifeboat Station is located at the Port and seaside town of Blyth, in the south east corner of the county of Northumberland, approx. 13 miles (21 km) north of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Penarth Lifeboat Station is located on the Esplanade in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.
The Mumbles Lifeboat Station is at Mumbles Pier, located at the south-western corner of Swansea Bay, near the village of Mumbles, within the city and county of Swansea, in the historic county of Glamorgan, Wales.
Aldeburgh Lifeboat Station is located in the town of Aldeburgh, in the English county of Suffolk.
Cardigan Lifeboat Station is located at Poppit Sands, on the southern side of the River Teifi estuary in North Pembrokeshire, approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) north-west of the town of Cardigan, Wales.
Brighton Lifeboat Station is located in the seaside town of Brighton in the county of East Sussex.
Anstruther Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station located in the town of Anstruther, Fife. The station has been in operation since 1865, although RNLI activity in the area dates back to 1832.
Swanage Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station located on Peveril Point in the town of Swanage in Dorset, England. It operates two lifeboats, the Shannon-class All-weather lifeboat 13-13 George Thomas Lacy and the D-class (IB1) inshore lifeboat (ILB) Roy Norgrove (D-884).
Fleetwood Lifeboat Station is located on The Esplanade at the port of Fleetwood, a Lancashire town at the north end of The Fylde, situated at the mouth of the River Wyre.
Cullercoats Lifeboat Station is located on the north side of Cullercoats Harbour, in the town of Cullercoats, North Tyneside, in the county of Tyne and Wear.
Seahouses Lifeboat Station is located in the village of Seahouses, in the county of Northumberland.
Berwick-upon-Tweed Lifeboat Station is located on the south bank of the River Tweed at Tweedmouth, part of the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, in the county of Northumberland.
Wicklow Lifeboat Station is located at East Pier in the county town of Wicklow, County Wicklow, a harbour town at the mouth of the River Vartry, on the east coast of Ireland.
Dungeness Lifeboat Station is located on Dungeness Road, about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) south-east of the town of Lydd, on the cuspate foreland of Dungeness, on the Kent coast.
Courtmacsherry Harbour Lifeboat Station is located on Sea Road, in the village of Courtmacsherry, County Cork, on the southern shore of the Argideen River estuary, approximately 45 kilometres (28 mi) south west of Cork, on the south coast of Ireland.
Red Bay Lifeboat Station is located at Coast Road, Cushendall, County Antrim, a village at the mouth of the River Dall, in the Glens of Antrim, approximately 20 miles (32 km) north east of Ballymena, on the north-east coast of Northern Ireland.
Newcastle Lifeboat Station is situated at South Promenade, Newcastle, a seaside town in County Down, located the foot of Slieve Donard, the highest of the Mourne Mountains, overlooking the Irish Sea, in the south east corner of Northern Ireland.
Youghal Lifeboat Station is located on The Mall, in Youghal, a town situated on the western bank of the River Blackwater estuary in County Cork, approximately 48.5 kilometres (30.1 mi) east of the city of Cork, on the south coast of Ireland.
Fenit Lifeboat Station is located at the Harbour in Fenit, a village sitting north of the Dingle Peninsula, and south of the River Shannon estuary, on the south west coast of Ireland.
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Royal National Lifeboat Institution 
