Special visitor 'truly humbled' by sacrifice of selfless lifesaving volunteers at Kessock RNLI
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A HIGHLAND representative of the monarch heard first hand about the sacrifices willingly made by Black Isle lifesavers ready to leap into action at the beep of a pager.
RNLI enthusiast Joanie Whiteford, who is Lord Lieutenant of Ross and Cromarty, Skye and Lochalsh, was accompanied to Kessock RNLI's station under the landmark bridge by a deputy who is himself no stranger to the charity.
For Angus Watson MBE formed part of the early crew at Kessock before taking on several roles locally and nationally for the charity, over a career spanning some 30 years.
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Mrs Whiteford was excited to be able to visit the station on a training night and said later she was "truly humbled" by the experience.
She said: "'What a privilege for me to be amongst such a competent and dedicated group of selfless volunteers, who give up their free time to train and prepare to save lives at sea.
"They go out to sea in all weathers when the alarm goes, always thinking of the welfare of others. I was especially grateful to lifeboat operations manager Jake [Scott], and deputy launch authority, Alan [McDiarmid], who took time out of their training schedule to show Deputy Lieutenant, Angus, and I around the station, and the B Class Atlantic 85 Robert and Isobel Mowat lifeboat."
She added: "I was so impressed with their procedures for dealing with call-outs, crew welfare and equipment maintenance, which ensured not only that their rescues were well practised, but also that the volunteers felt safe, valued and supported. I was truly humbled by the dedication of all these wonderful volunteers."
After introductions, the evening took a normal schedule of a briefing from the helm and discussions over exercises before the boat was launched.
Whilst at sea, The Lord Lieutenant met several members of the station’s operations team, shore crew and tractor drivers. Whilst tractor training was being carried out by trainees, the Lord Lieutenant observed from a safe distance, commenting on how well the training was conducted, and how professionally the trainees undertook the tasks.
It was a windy and cool evening in North Kessock, but the Lord Lieutenant was keen to observe the boat being recovered and interested to hear about what happens once it’s out of the water.
For shore crew, the task of cleaning down the boat and equipment, refuelling and ensuring everything is back in its correct place is second nature, but they were all happy to explain what they were doing and why, and share past experiences of late-night call outs, wintry recoveries and stories of lifeboat life and living by the pager.
The Lord Lieutenant had an opportunity to speak to the crew who had been out on training in a slightly warmer boat shed before leaving for the evening as the boat was packed away and made ready for service.
Jake Scott, lifeboat operations manager for Kessock, said: “We were delighted that the Lord Lieutenant joined us and got to see our volunteer crew undertaking training. This was a great opportunity for many station personnel to meet her and chat about their experiences with the RNLI. A great evening all round."
Kessock lifeboat station has been operating since 1994.
To learn more about the lifeboat station go to: https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/kessock-lifeboat-station
