Support the RNLI
The River Thames has historically always been the lifeblood of London and even today an incredible 100,000 people use it every day for travel, work and leisure.
Whilst the river clearly enhances the quality of life in the capital it comes with its own inherent dangers. This was tragically highlighted by the sinking of the Marchioness pleasure cruiser with the loss of 51 lives.
The ensuing enquiry called for a comprehensive search and rescue service along the tidal Thames, a call which was answered by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
Founded in the city in 1824 and with 230 lifeboat stations around the UK and Ireland, this historic organisation was the natural choice of guardian for river-users. Relying entirely on voluntary contributions to meet the £282,000 daily cost of running the lifeboat service it launched four Thames stations in January 2002.
From their Gravesend Pier, Tower Pier, Chiswick Pier and Teddington bases they offer a speedy 15-minute incident response time. In their first year of operation the volunteers and staff attended 1000 call outs, an astonishing five times the original estimate.
From full-scale rescues of people in the water to submerged cars and people and their pets cut off by flooding or tide, the RNLI have more than justified their position as the fourth emergency service.
The London Coastgaurd are never more than a 999 call away and London Lifeboat Week is your chance to show your appreciation to the men and women who unselfishly give their time and expertise to make the Thames a safer place.
In 2002 the four London Royal National Lifeboat Institution stations responded to more than 1,000 calls for help.
To answer calls like these, and to continue its life-saving work around the coast and on the Thames, the RNLI is wholly dependent on voluntary donations.
The RNLI has teamed up with Sunsail to offer a chance to win one of 5 great prizes during London Lifeboat Week.
* A week’s holiday in the Mediterranean for two
* A luxury day’s sailing for 6 people
* A day’s sailing on an America’s cup yacht
* Two five day RYA sailing courses
CLICK HERE for Terms and conditions
Registered Charity No:. 209603
To make a donation please go to http://www.rnli.org.uk/donate.asp
Prizes generously donated by Sunsail the world leaders in sailing holidays
