24/08/2026
Tonight, the crew at Flint Lifeboat Station carried out our weekly afloat training exercise.
The crew were undertaking an assessment preparation exercise, helping our members build the skills, knowledge and confidence required ahead of their upcoming pass-outs. Training like this is a vital part of our crew progression and ensures that our volunteers are able to operate safely and effectively when called upon to help save lives at sea.
Unfortunately, tonight’s training was cut short following an incident involving antisocial behaviour.
While transiting beneath one of the bridges within our area of operation, the crew came across a group of youths who had tied a life ring to the bridge, leaving it suspended over the water. Another life ring had also been thrown into the river.
Our crew asked the individuals to return the equipment to where it belonged, however, they chose not to do so.
As a result, two of our crew members had to be deployed to safely recover and return the life rings, bringing our scheduled training exercise to an early conclusion. This incident also required the assistance of our colleagues from Flint Coastguard Rescue Team and North Wales Policewho we would like to thank for their support in helping locate and recover the missing equipment.
You may have seen life rings positioned around our coastline and waterways. These are not simply pieces of public equipment they can be the difference between life and death.
A life ring provides a vital means of assistance to someone who has entered the water and may be in difficulty, potentially giving them precious time while the emergency services make their way to them.
What may seem like a harmless prank can have very serious consequences. If a life ring is missing when someone needs it, those precious minutes could be the difference between someone being rescued and a tragedy occurring.
Please help us look after the lifesaving equipment in our communities. If you see someone tampering with or removing a life ring, please report it.
We would also like to thank our local community for the continued support you give to Flint Lifeboat Station. Your support enables our volunteers to continue training, preparing and ultimately doing what we are here to do saving lives at sea.
