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Coastwatch station to tackle incidents 'hotspot'

Pritti Mistry
BBC News
NCI A mobile hut with three people inside. The exterior is blue and has a sign reading: NATIONAL COASTWATCH INSTITUTIONNCI
National Coastwatch has set up a station next to Cleethorpes Leisure Centre

A coastwatch station is up and running in Cleethorpes after it was identified as a "hotspot" for incidents.

The National Coastwatch charity said volunteers at the seafront unit would be able to keep daily watch for anyone in danger along the coast and at sea.

Cleethorpes RNLI said crews had been called out 37 times this year – about a third more than they would usually expect at this point of the summer.

Ian Whalley MBE, deputy chairman of National Coastwatch, said: "The station has been opened there because that coastline in Cleethorpes and Lincolnshire has been identified as a hotspot area."

Getty Images A photo of a Cleethorpes beach. The tide is out and the sky is blue with light clouds. Getty Images
The Cleethorpes base is the fourth station on the Lincolnshire coast

"There is a higher than average rate of incidents in that area and we would hope that, with our new station, we will be able to reduce the rate of incidents in the area," said Mr Whalley.

Trained volunteers at the station, which is next to Cleethorpes Leisure Centre, would report any coastal safety-related incidents to HM Coastguard for "expert rescue assets to be sent", the charity said.

Mr Whalley said the resort was popular with visitors and footfall had grown since the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

"There's been a high increase in attendance to this very attractive coastal resort," he said.

"It's a beautiful beach, but it also can be dangerous."

National Coastwatch A headshot of a man with grey hair and a grey moustache wearing glasses and smiling into the camera. He is wearing Coastguard uniform that is white with black and yellow shoulder pads. National Coastwatch
Ian Whalley MBE, deputy chairman of National Coastwatch, is station manager at Skegness

A large proportion of the incidents involved people being cut off by the incoming tide, or people needing to be rescued due to offshore winds.

On Monday, five people had to be rescued by a Coastguard helicopter after misjudging the tide on the sands off Cleethorpes.

The National Coastwatch charity, which was set up in Cornwall in 1994 and run by volunteers, now has 61 stations, with fully-trained volunteer watchkeepers all reporting to HM Coastguard.

As well as the one in Cleethorpes, there are three other stations on the Lincolnshire coast - at Chapel Point, Mablethorpe and Skegness.

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