The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It is one of several lifeboat services operating in the same area.
Bembridge is a village and civil parish located on the easternmost point of the Isle of Wight. It had a population of 3,848 according to the 2001 census of the United Kingdom, leading to the implausible claim by some residents that Bembridge is the largest village in England. Bembridge is home to many of the Island's wealthiest residents. The population had reduced to 3,688 at the 2011 Census.
Freshwater is a large village and civil parish at the western end of the Isle of Wight, England. The southern, coastal part of the village is Freshwater Bay, named for the adjacent small cove. Freshwater sits at the western end of the region known as the Back of the Wight or the West Wight, a popular tourist area.
Since its inception, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has provided lifeboats to lifeboat stations in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service, or Caister Lifeboat, is based at Caister-on-Sea in Norfolk, and operates one of only three offshore lifeboats in the UK that are independent of the RNLI.
Gosport Lifeboat Station is a volunteer-operated independent lifeboat station charity located in the village of Alverstoke on the peninsula of Gosport in the English county of Hampshire. Owned and operated by Gosport and Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (GAFIRS), it operates free lifeboat services in the Solent from Portsmouth Harbour to Titchfield Haven, on the approaching shores of Southampton Water. GAFIRS is a charity registered in England and Wales (1159681).
Falmouth Lifeboat Station is the base for Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) search and rescue operations at Falmouth, Cornwall in the United Kingdom. The first lifeboat was stationed in the town in 1867 and the present station was opened in 1993. It operates a Severn Class all-weather Lifeboat (ALB) and an Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat (ILB).
Newhaven Lifeboat Station is an RNLI station located in the town of Newhaven in the English county of East Sussex in the United Kingdom. The station currently operates as all-weather lifeboat station. The original station was established in 1803 and taken over by the RNLI in 1854. The current lifeboat (2014) is the Severn class David and Elizabeth Acland .
Hayling Island Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution station located on Hayling Island close to the town of Mengham in the English county of Hampshire. The station is located on the eastern side of Hayling island at the entrance to Chichester Harbour where it joins the major shipping route of the Solent, and is opposite the village of West Wittering. This major shipping route is busy at all times of the year and there are estimated to be 10,000 boats in the Chichester area alone. The Hayling Island station provides cover for the area 24 hours a day, all year, by means of two inshore rigid inflatable lifeboats placed on this station.
Portsmouth Lifeboat Station is located on Eastney Point near Southsea, in the English county of Hampshire. The station is owned and operated by the RNLI and is an Inshore lifeboat station. The station is facing Langstone Harbour on one of the tributaries flowing into the Solent. The station was established in May 1965.
Bembridge Lifeboat Station is an RNLI station located in the village of Bembridge on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom.
Yarmouth Lifeboat station is an RNLI station located in the town of Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. The station has been based in Yarmouth's harbour since 1924. Previously the station had been in Totland Bay, west of Yarmouth, until it was decided that the station need a motor lifeboat. The current Severn-class lifeboat is moored afloat and shore facilities are on the quayside in Yarmouth. The station covers the western Solent with its all-weather lifeboat Eric and Susan Hiscock (Wanderer) (ON-1249) which has been on service at Yarmouth since 2001.
Ryde Inshore Rescue Service is a voluntary run lifeboat station located in the town of Ryde on the Isle of Wight. Ryde Inshore Rescue is an independent lifeboat station within the United Kingdom. It is not part of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and does not receive funding from the RNLI or the government.
Sandown Lifeboat Station is owned and run by Sandown and Shanklin Independent Lifeboat Service. It is located in the town of Sandown in the English county and island of the Isle of Wight.
RNLB Margaret Russell Fraser was an Arun-class lifeboat which served in the Royal National Lifeboat Institution(RNLI) Relief Fleet for 16 years before being placed on station at the Calshot Lifeboat Station in Calshot, Hampshire, United Kingdom.
Calshot Lifeboat Station is located on Calshot Spit near the village of Calshot, Hampshire, and is on the southern bank of the open end of Southampton Water, on the south coast of England. The station is owned and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and currently operates two inshore lifeboats. They are an Atlantic 85 called Max Walls (B-860) and a D-class (IB1) called RNLB Willett (D-748).
Independent lifeboat services in Britain and Ireland began to be established around the coasts towards the end of the 18th century in response to the loss of life at sea. More recently, independent services have been set up in response to the increasing popularity of coastal and river sport and leisure activities.
RNLB Queen Victoria is an historic shore-based lifeboat, built in 1887, operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), and now preserved at The Shipwreck Centre, Arreton, Isle of Wight.
