The crew at Poole lifeboat station

The present crew

It takes a special kind of person to cope with the risks. There are currently 30 volunteer crew members, including trainees, and one full-time mechanic at Poole lifeboat station. The full-time mechanic is the cornerstone of the station, keeping the boats, equipment, and the station buildings in immaculate condition.

The volunteers come from all walks of life: many of the crew have connections with the sea through their regular jobs but it’s not a prerequisite. Included within the crew are six who work for the super-yacht builders Sunseekers, an ironmonger, several RNLI Headquarters staff, a tug skipper, a fisherman, a sailmaker, one who runs a small boat school, a crane driver and an HGV fitter. All of them are committed to providing the local community with a high quality rescue service on the water – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The station also has a lifeboat operations manager (LOM), who is in charge of deciding whether to launch the lifeboats and there are also three deputy launching authorities (DLAs). There is also a PR officer and a visits and education officer.

Everybody involved at the station has an important part to play. You have to have a real commitment to the job and also be prepared for a lot of training and unsociable hours – so your family needs to be very understanding. It also takes an understanding employer to let you leave your job at a moment’s notice so you will need to make sure your employer is happy for to drop everything as soon as the pager goes off.

All the lifeboat crew and LOM and DLAs carry a pager but you never know when the pager is going to go off and interrupt your everyday life. All of the crew devote a lot of time to the station and are ‘on call’ for as much time as possible.

Training

Traditionally lifeboat crew were from local fishing families and the RNLI utilised their seafaring skills. Today training is provided to ensure that the same high standards are achieved. Our Divisional Inspector, based at the Divisional Base South at Saltash, regularly visits the station to check that we are up to scratch. The RNLI and Poole lifeboat station provides first class training and equipment, guidance and support. You can read more about the experience of being a trainee here.

The shouts

Poole lifeboat station is one of the busiest lifeboat stations in the UK and RoI, launching on average three times each week. In 2007, it was one of the busiest coastal lifeboat stations, launching 115 times.

The Coastguard initiate an assembly by setting off the crews' pagers. When the pagers go off you may be at home, out shopping, at work or even asleep; whatever you’re doing you need to rush to the lifeboat station as quickly, but as safely, as possible. You may jump into your car or even run down to the station but bikes and boats have all been used to get crew and shore helpers to the station. Although the mode of transport may be different for every crew member there’s one thing that’s always the same – the butterflies and the adrenalin start pumping and the question that’s asked is: ‘I wonder what the shout will be this time?’

All available crew respond as quickly as possible, whatever the time of day. Normally we can get the boats under way within 8 minutes, but mid-Summer traffic jams can cause delays. The coxswain of the all-weather lifeboat (ALB) or the helmsman of the inshore lifeboat (ILB) selects their crew from those that turn up. Six crew are needed for the ALB and three for the ILB. The coxswain or helmsman will know what is required for the particular rescue and will pick his, or her, crew accordingly. If possible the shouts are shared out so that all of the crew grow in experience.

After a shout you'll see the crew back at the boathouse, buzzing with adrenalin, discussing what they did, and what they could have done better. On arrival back alongside the boats will be hosed down, the fuel checked, and everything made sure that the boats are ready for the next service.

	Crew: Jonathan Clark Role: Coxswain Joined: 1985 Facts: Marine Manager - Sunseekers Number of shouts 2009: 36 Jonathan is from a well-known Poole family and has been in and around the water all his life. It’s a fact that he hates going inland as his skin dries up! He joined the crew as soon as he officially could, following in his father’s footsteps, John Clark Snr who was the Second Coxswain and started his service at what is now the old lifeboat museum on the quay. Jonathan has been the Coxswain since 1998 and is the 12th Poole Coxswain. His house is strategically positioned 100m from the lifeboat station and 100m from Sunseekers where he works in his ‘spare time’. In 2005 Jon received his Long Service Medal for 20 years’ volunteer service.
	Crew: Andrew Elton Role: Deputy Second Coxswain Joined: 1990 Facts: RNLI Technician Number of shouts 2009: 13 Andy currently works for the RNLI as a Fleet Technician, based in Poole but supporting relief boats and plant anywhere in the UK and RoI. He has been on the crew since 1990, became Second Coxswain in 2006 and then, because of work commitments, became Deputy Second Coxswain in 2008.
	Crew: Paul 'Flipper' Singleton Role: Senior ILB Helm and Second Coxswain Joined: 1982 Facts: Tug Skipper Number of shouts 2009: 68 Flipper joined the crew in 1982 and is now the longest serving crew member. He received his Long Service Medal for 20 years’ service in 2005 – a bit late! He also met Her Majesty The Queen at St James's Palace, when she viewed the new Atlantic 85 lifeboat, which Poole Lifeboat Station received in December 2008. He is the ILB Senior Helmsman and Skipper of Poole Harbour Commissioner's tug Herbert Ballam. He is a family man but his family have got used to Flipper responding to the pager at a moment’s notice. A natural comedian, Flipper's cheerful remarks have put quite a few seafarers at ease in difficult situations. A bit of a party animal, his wife only lets him out occasionally and only if well supervised!
	Crew: Stuart Newcombe Role: ILB Helm and ALB Deputy Second Coxswain Joined: 2000 Facts: Powerboat School Principal Number of shouts 2009: 21 Stuart joined the crew in 2000. He is an ILB Helmsman and ALB Deputy Second Coxswain and always has the boiler on the go for a cup of tea on the lifeboat. Stuart runs a powerboat school at Cobb’s Quay.
	Crew: Dave Riley (aka Smiley Riley) Role: ILB Helm and ALB Deputy Second Coxswain Joined: 2005 (and at Eastbourne Lifeboat Station since June 1996) Facts: ILB Instructor at RNLI Lifeboat College Number of shouts 2009: 49 Dave joined Eastbourne lifeboat crew in 1996, eventually working his way up to Navigator on the ALB and Helmsman on the ILB. Dave spent 9 years working at the local marina as a lock keeper. In November 2004 Dave moved down to Poole to take up his new role as an ILB Instructor at the Lifeboat College. His role also includes training on the RNLI hovercraft, which he tries hard not to break! In April 2005 Dave joined the crew of Poole lifeboat.
	Crew: Paul Taylor Role: Full-time Mechanic Joined: 1993 Facts: Full-time lifeboat Mechanic at Poole station Number of shouts 2009: 52 Paul is our full-time Mechanic, coming to Poole in September 2005 after being a crew member at St Davids for nearly 15 years. Coming from Wales, he doubled the Welsh contingent on the crew at the time. He is the cornerstone of the station, keeping the boats, equipment and the buildings in immaculate condition.