Burnham-on-Sea Lifeboat Station

Burnham-on-Sea Lifeboat Station
Burnham-on-Sea Lifeboat Station is located in Somerset
Burnham-on-Sea Lifeboat Station
Burnham-on-Sea
General information
TypeRNLI Lifeboat Station
LocationPier Street, TA8 1BT
CountryUnited Kingdom
Coordinates51°14′01″N 2°59′50″W / 51.2337°N 2.9973°W / 51.2337; -2.9973
OpenedFirst lifeboat 1836
Present station 2003
Owner Royal National Lifeboat Institution

Burnham-on-Sea Lifeboat Station is the base for Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) search and rescue operations at Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset in England. A lifeboat was stationed in the town from 1836 until 1930. The present station was opened in 2003. It operates two inshore lifeboats (ILBs), a B-Class rigid-inflatable boat and an inflatable D-Class.

History

[edit]
The 1874 boat house, seen in 2010

Burnham-on-Sea is on the Bristol Channel near the mouth of the River Parrett. Ships entering the river to Bridgwater have to negotiate sand banks and mudflats. The first lifeboat at Burnham-on-Sea was a gift by Sir Peregrine Acland to the Corporation of Bridgwater in 1836. This was replaced by a new boat in 1847.[1]

In 1866 the RNLI took over the service from the Bridgwater Harbour Trust. A new boat was provided and a new boat house built but this was replaced by a new building in 1874[1] next to the railway station. A siding was laid to the boat house and the boat on its carriage was hauled down the track by horses to the slipway. The station was closed in 1930 and has since had several uses including a scout hut and children's play centre.[2]

Lifeboats returned to the town in 1994 when the Burnham Area Rescue Boat (BARB) provided an inflatable inshore rescue boat and, from 2003, hovercraft that could operate on the local mudflats. BARB asked the RNLI to take over the provision of a sea-going inshore rescue boat, which it did when a new lifeboat station was built near the old 1874 boat house and brought into use on 23 December 2003.[1]

In 2014, two members of the crew received signed Letters of Appreciation from the Chief Executive of the RNLI for their part in the rescue of 3 teenagers caught in fast flowing water at the end of Burnham-on-Sea jetty the previous summer.

In 2016 Puffin (D-664) a D-class lifeboat, which had been in service for ten years, was replaced by a new craft named Burnham Reach (D-801) after a campaign raised the nearly £50,000 which was needed.[3]

Area of operation

[edit]
B-795 Staines Whitfield

The Atlantic 85, which is launched using a Talus MB-4H[4] launch tractor aboard a Do-Do carriage,[5] can operate in Force 7 winds (Force 6 at night), has a top speed of 35 knots (65 km/h) and a range of 2½ hours at maximum speed.[6] Adjacent lifeboats are at Minehead Lifeboat Station to the west, and Weston-super-Mare Lifeboat Station to the north. If a larger all-weather lifeboat is needed in the area it can be summoned from Barry Dock.[7]

Burnham-on-Sea lifeboats

[edit]

Pulling and sailing lifeboats (1836–1930)

[edit]

'ON' is the Official Number used in RNLI records from 1884.

ON Name At Burnham Class Comments
1866–1887 – Cheltenham Standard Self-righter 32 ft (9.8 m) boat.[1][8]
1887–1902 138 John Godfrey Morris Standard Self-righter 34 ft 1 in (10.39 m) boat.[1][9]
1902–1930 498 Philip Beach Liverpool [1][10]

Inshore lifeboats (from 2003)

[edit]

'Op. No.' is the Operational Number displayed on the boat.

At Burnham Op. No. Name Class Model Comments
2003–2004 B-700 Susan Peacock B Atlantic 75 The first of 97 'Atlantic 75' lifeboats built between 1993 and 2003.[11]
2003–2004 D-424 City of Chester D EA16 Originally stationed at Fleetwood.[12]
2004–2005 D-495 Elsie Frances II D EA16 Originally stationed at Bude.[13]
2004–2018 B-795 Staines Whitfield B Atlantic 75 [14]
2005–2006 D-552 Global Marine D EA16 Originally stationed at Marazion.[15]
2006–2016 D-664 Puffin D IB1 [14]
2016– D-801 Burnham Reach D IB1 [14]
2019– B-914 Doris Day and Brian B Atlantic 85 [14]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f "Burnham-on-Sea History". RNLI. Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
  2. ^ Oakley, Mike (2006). Somerset Railway Stations. Bristol: Redcliffe Press. pp. 32–33. ISBN 1-904537-54-5.
  3. ^ "RNLI Somerset lifeboat launched with jug of cider". BBC. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  4. ^ "Talus MB-4H Tractor". Details of the MB-4H production. Clayton Engineering Ltd. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  5. ^ "A85 DO-DO Carriage – Clayton Engineering". Details of the Clayton DoDo launch carriage. Clayton Engineering Ltd. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  6. ^ "Atlantic 75 and 85 (B Class)". RNLI. Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
  7. ^ Denton, Tony (2010). Handbook 2010. Shrewsbury: Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 68.
  8. ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–18.
  9. ^ Denton 2010, p. 4.
  10. ^ Denton 2010, pp. 12–13.
  11. ^ Denton 2010, p. 51.
  12. ^ Denton 2010, p. 60.
  13. ^ Denton 2010, p. 61.
  14. ^ a b c d Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.
  15. ^ Denton 2010, p. 62.
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Burnham-on-Sea Lifeboat Station.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Burnham-on-Sea_Lifeboat_Station&oldid=1219587786"