North Berwick Lifeboat Station

North Berwick Lifeboat Station is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) marine-rescue facility in North Berwick, East Lothian, Scotland.

North Berwick Lifeboat Station
North Berwick Lifeboat Station
North Berwick, East Lothian
General information
TypeRNLI Lifeboat Station
LocationVictoria Road, North Berwick, East Lothian, Scotland, UK
CountryScotland, UK
Coordinates56°3′37.2″N 2°43′3.5″W
Opened1860
OwnerRoyal National Lifeboat Institution

The RNLI first allotted a lifeboat to North Berwick in 1869, in response to the nearby shipwreck of the schooner Bubona the year before.[1] The station closed in 1925 but was re-established in 1967, when the viewers of the BBC children's television programme Blue Peter funded the purchase of four D class lifeboats—one of which, the Blue Peter III, was assigned to North Berwick.[2] Between the years of 1967 and 2013 five Blue Peter Lifeboats were placed on station, all named Blue Peter III and collectively rescued over 277 people.[3]

The current Lifeboat on station is a D-class (D758), the Evelyn M, named after Evelyn Murdoch whose charitable trust (the Evelyn M Murdoch charitable trust) paid for the construction of the vessel. The lifeboat was handed over to the RNLI at a ceremony in September, 2013. The Lifeboat was accepted on behalf of the RNLI and passed into the care of volunteer crew at North Berwick Lifeboat Station by Sir Peter Housden, Permanent Secretary at the Scottish Government and RNLI Council Member. The Service of Dedication was led by Reverend Neil Dougall and named ‘Evelyn M’ by Helen Hanson, trustee of the Miss Evelyn M Murdoch Charitable Trust.[4]

In the last 100 years the station's rescue crews have received three RNLI awards for gallantry and three Blue Peter gold badges.[5]

Fleet

All Weather Lifeboats (ALBs)
Dates in service Class Name
1860-1867 6 oared, single banked, self-righting Caroline
1867-1871 30 foot, 10 oared, self-righting Caroline II
1871-1887 30 foot, 10 oared, double banked, self-righting Freemason
1887-1902 34 foot, 10 oared, double banked, self-righting Fergus Ferguson
1902-1920 35 foot, 10 oared, double banked, self-righting Norman Clark
1920-1921 "Temporary Lifeboat"
1921-1923 Pulling & Sailing John William Dudley
1923-1925 Pulling & Sailing Elizabeth Moore Graden

Between 1920 and the closing of the station in 1925 the lifeboats were launched only once with no lives being claimed as saved.

The station was re-opened in 1967 and established as an Inshore Lifeboat Station. Operating out of the lower Granary store, now owned by East Lothian Yacht Club, the original boat house was restored in 1991 and is still used today.

Inshore Lifeboats (ILBs)
Dates in service Class Op. No. Name
1967–1973 D-class (RFD PB16) D-112 Blue Peter III
1973–1984 D-class (Zodiac III) D-216 Blue Peter III
1984–1993 D-class (EA16) D-306 Blue Peter III
1993–2004 D-class (EA16) D-452 Blue Peter III
2004–2013 D-class (IB1) D-619 Blue Peter III
2013–present D-class (IB1) D-758 Evelyn M

References
  1. Douglas C. Seaton. "Lifeboat Back on Station". Royal Burgh of North Berwick. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
  2. "North Berwick History". RNLI. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
  3. "End of an era for North Berwick lifeboat station". RNLI. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  4. "New Lifeboat, the 'Evelyn M' named in ceremony at North Berwick". RNLI. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  5. "Lifeboat Station: North Berwick". RNLI. Retrieved 17 December 2009.

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