THE LIFEBOAT crew at Penlee has seen their busiest year for more than a century.
The Newlyn station, which first started in 1908, rescued 143 people during 2010.
Though the figures have not yet been made official by the RNLI, an independent charity, The Cornishman can reveal it looks set to be the busiest year on record for the Penlee rescue crew.
The main lifeboat, the Severn class Ivan Ellen, has been to the aid of 36 stricken ships, while the inshore vessel, the Paul Alexander, an Atlantic class rig, has attended 32 incidents.
Click here for more
Coxswain Patch Harvey said the high number of tourists over the summer had meant a busy season for lifeboat crews across the region, from Falmouth to the Lizard and round to Sennen Cove.
Leisure craft
Of the total incidents, 22 involved fishing boats while 24 were yachts or other leisure craft.
"We have always dealt with the fishing vessels, but now a lot of people are choosing to come down to the South West and going out on the sea," he told The Cornishman.
During the last 12 months, the port's 26 volunteer crew members have towed a 130-tonne schooner, the Pacific Swift from Holland, into harbour after the ship was caught in a storm and blew out her sails.
They have also saved the life of a sick sailor aboard an 80ft yacht 31 miles south of Newlyn. The ill man was transferred to the dinghy then on to the lifeboat in rough seas and winds reaching up to 30 knots.
Crew members have also had the grim task of recovering two bodies. And the crew have saved three dogs, one of whom was a young pup called Mabel who swam a quarter of a mile from the shore after jumping in to chase seagulls at Long Rock beach.
As well as Patch, there are three coxswain – Dave Pascoe, Ben Keogh and Kenny Downing. All RNLI volunteer crew members are on standby 24 hours a day; they have to live within two miles of the station and have pagers to alert them to calls for assistance.
There is no lack of volunteers to man the charity's lifeboats for the Penlee station, and many of the crew members are fishermen or former sailors. Despite their busy year, they always train on exercises every week and have even hosted celebrities like Timothy Spall on board the Ivan Ellen in 2010. Patch says community support for the men is strong, and they're always happy to take part in events like the popular Fish Festival in Newlyn, as well as showing visiting schoolchildren around the station.
The RNLI holds such a strong place in people's hearts that when money was stolen last week from the station, local helicopter firm British International stepped forward to offer £400 to replace it. Cash meant for the charity taken from a St Just hairdressers was also replaced by generous donors in the area.
"I think the lifeboat is a big part of the community of Newlyn," adds Patch. "There never seems to be a shortage of supply of crew."
So what's in store in 2011?
"It's impossible to tell; if we have one shout then we usually have two or three more afterwards," he says.
"You just never know."
article copyright THE CORNISHMAN