17/10/2026
A glorious autumnal day out there today, slightly different on this night thirty years ago for the coxswain and crew of the previous Sheerness All weather lifeboat, the Waveney class, Helen Turnbull. A Hurricane was making it's way up the English Channel. As it struck, Sheerness Lifeboat crew assembled to move the boat to the relative safety of Queenborough Harbour From it's moorings in The docks. The Lifeboat was subsequently diverted to a small angling craft with a Father and son on board in danger of being destroyed by the conditions. The Lifeboat proceeded in Hurricane force winds to their position off Allhallows in the Thames Estuary. Both occupants were saved. Coxswain Robin Castle MBE received a bravery medal from the RNLI in recognition of his part in this service.
Let's hope for a quieter night tonight! The attached photograph is from a later launch in gale force conditions.
