Galway RNLI is looking for former crew

Shane Folan, who was one of the first lifeboat crew volunteers with Galway RNLI and is now a Launch Authority, said: ‘It’s been 30 years since the start of crew training which was one of the early steps towards getting the lifeboat service and the lifeboat station off the ground in Galway.

‘So much has changed over the years and we look forward to marking the achievement of so many volunteers who have been involved in supporting the station and enabling us to provide a search and rescue service here over the past 30 years.

‘We would like to hear from past crew, some of whom we’ve lost touch with or who may have moved away and also we’d like to put the call out for old photos and memories of volunteering with Galway RNLI from the past 30 years.

‘The origins of the lifeboat service in Galway began in the 1990s following a number of incidents on Galway Bay and campaigning by the local RNLI fundraising committee, with the support of the maritime community and other search and rescue agencies. Following a public meeting where support for a lifeboat service was unanimous, in April 1994 the RNLI announced that an Atlantic 21 lifeboat would be placed on a year’s evaluation in Galway.

‘In October 1995 the recently enrolled crew members went to the RNLI Inshore Lifeboat Centre in Cowes on the Isle of Wight for training and the following month the temporary lifeboat arrived in Galway. At this stage there was no boathouse so the lifeboat was kept at the workplace of Pat Lavelle, one of the founding members of the RNLI in Galway and the first volunteer Lifeboat Operations Manager. From there the lifeboat was towed on a trailer to the Docks to launch.

‘Over the coming months we hope to be able to mark 30 years of Galway RNLI with as many former crew as possible and we are putting the call out for past crew to make contact by emailing [email protected]. We look forward to catching up, sharing stories of days gone by and taking the time to acknowledge the thousands of volunteer hours dedicated by so many to saving lives at sea.’

Ends

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI is the charity that 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 146,700 lives.

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