200 hours at sea in the 200th year for Fishguard RNLI volunteer

Jessica Rogers joined the volunteer crew at Fishguard in September 2021 as crew for both the station’s Trent class all-weather lifeboat Blue Peter VII and D Class Inshore Lifeboat Edward Arthur Richardson.

This year has been busy for Fishguard with over 30 service launches to date, but alongside that, the addition of a new full time coxswain, and the introduction of a new tiered training scheme as well as being the bicentenary year of the founding of the RNLI by Sir William Hillary in 2024, all of which has raised the profile of Fishguard RNLI.

Around all this Jessica has passed Tier One and Tier Two crew assessments for both lifeboats, meaning she is fully competent to crew on either lifesaving asset. She has also progressed on to further plans to develop her skills including boarding boat helm and navigator for both vessels. In doing so she has surpassed 200 hours at sea, an achievement not seen at Fishguard in at least eight years according to station records. This figure does not include the number of hours she has also put into shore side training, being part of the fundraising team or her other volunteer role at station as Lifeboat Training Coordinator, assisting with ensuring all crew training is up to date and advising station management and crew when necessary.

In her professional life Jessica is a self employed podiatrist working in Fishguard having moved to the area with her husband in 2019. Her clients are aware of her passion and commitment to the charity and the latest news on shouts at Fishguard is always one of the first topics of conversation. Some have even experienced the rush of the shout when pager goes off whilst they are in the treatment chair. In these circumstances Jessica uses her professional judgement as to whether she can leave the clinic, as the safety of her client is always at the forefront.

Jessica’s 200 hours at sea are made up of 35 hours, spread across 15 shouts, with the remainder being time she has given for training, not only for herself, but to assist other crew by making up numbers when additional crew are required to be able to take an asset to sea.

This achievement is made even more poignant by 2024 being the 200^th anniversary of the founding of the RNLI, making Jessica the first at Fishguard to reach 200 hours in the 200^th year, highlighting the commitment of volunteers locally and across the country for over 200 years.

Jessica will be among a small number of crew at Fishguard to achieve this milestone this year, with only one or two others expected to surpass 200 hours in the remaining days.

So far this year four volunteer crew members have received a commemorative glass, crafted by full time station coxswain Gemma recognising them having spent one hundred hours at sea. In addition to Jessica the recipients of these were Florian Caroff, Jessica’s husband Cedwyn Rogers and most recently Jake Thomson. Gemma is now working on something special, to commemorate this next milestone.

Full time station coxswain for Fishguard RNLI, Gemma Gill said:

‘I am really proud of all of our team here in Fishguard, but especially proud that one of them has reached this momentous milestone in our RNLI 200^th year. It is worth noting that these 200 hours we are celebrating Jess contributing, are the hours recorded on LSAR, (exercise and service), afloat on Fishguard's assets only. This does not include ashore training, courses attended in Poole, LTC admin, or the countless hours of other RNLI related activity that Jess has contributed to our station and the wider lifesaving effort, including educating children's visit groups, being an active fundraiser, and representing our station at community events and further afield RNLI 200 events. Thank you Jess, keep doing what you do, and thank you all of our Fishguard #onecrew.’

Volunteer crew member for Fishguard RNLI, Jessica Rogers said:

‘I was surprised to find out I had spent this much time afloat this year, I love being part of the Fishguard crew and as they say, time flies when you're having fun! Reaching this milestone is certainly not just my achievement...it has only been possible for me to spend all this time afloat through the hard work of RNLI staff and volunteers, and of course the generous donations from our supporters which keep our boats afloat and enable our crews to train as often as they need to so they're ready to answer the call.

I look forward to next year where I hope to pass even more training milestones and become a really useful crew member to help save lives at sea.’

Notes to editor:

· Attached photo (Photo 1) shows Fishguard RNLI crew member Jessica Rogers. (19 February 2024). Photo credit: RNLI/Nigel Millard

Media Contacts

For more information please contact Cedwyn Rogers, Lifeboat Press Officer on [email protected] or RNLI Regional Communications Manager Claire Fitzpatrick-Smith on [email protected] / 07977 728 315 or Regional Communications Lead Danielle Rush on [email protected] or 07786 668 829

For out of hours enquiries please contact the RNLI Press Office on 01202 336 789

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.

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