Summer 2013 kept the lifesavers so busy

Thousands flocked to the coast this year to enjoy the great Summer weather – and many needed help from the RNLI’s brave volunteers.  The RNLI’s lifeboat crews and lifeguards saw their busiest Summer in 24 years, rescuing those in trouble – and saving lives. 

From 1 June to 31 August, RNLI lifeboats launched 4,300 times. 

RNLI lifeguards attended over 14,800 incidents. 

Read on the RNLI website about the stories involved – of many lucky people, and other fortunate characters.  Like all other RNLI Lifeboat Stations, the crew at Newbiggin are always there to save a life, be it human or animal. This year, they probably made lifeboat history, saving a pair of ferrets: Tootise and Lucky (very lucky as it happened), after their owners’ desperate attempts to save them failed.

Lifeboat crews were also involved in some dramatic rescues: including when 'tall ship' Astrid sank, and when the Super Puma helicopter crashed in the North Sea. 

Lifeboat Fund supporters can feel very proud – none of this would happen without fundraisers and donors like you.