We speak to the people who volunteer for the RNLI in Sheppey

Transcript

00:00 200 years of saving lives. That's two centuries, or 70,000 days of volunteers out on the choppy

00:15 waters helping fishermen, swimmers and anyone in need.

00:20 Back in 1824, the RNLI's first lifeboat set sail and now they're still braving the waters

00:28 with more than 140,000 lives saved across the country.

00:33 Docks are dotted far and wide across the UK, including in Sheppey, which came about in

00:39 1960. It operates within the island's old naval port and is home to 24 crew members

00:46 and both an inshore lifeboat and an all-weather lifeboat.

00:50 Paul Jarvis has been on the crew at Sheppey for the last 31 years. It covers the waterways

00:57 of the River Medway and the Swale. The Coxswain is now the only full-time member of the team.

01:03 Basically we're trying to make professional seamen out of volunteers, so it's a big ask.

01:08 People have to put in quite a bit of time for training. Not long after I joined, a long

01:11 time ago now, I went out as a fairly new crew member to a woman doing a solo passage on

01:18 a yacht and it was in a thunderstorm and I remember distinctly going out with black skies

01:23 and lightning flashing all around thinking this doesn't look very safe. But yeah, it

01:27 was quite a good job really, so I got back safely and a yacht.

01:31 It's a service we're all familiar with and it's been going for 200 years, but within

01:36 that time, do all members of the public actually grasp the concept of what these people are

01:40 doing day to day and the commitment they're putting in to save lives? Well, I'm here in

01:45 Sheerness to find out a bit more about those people saving lives and to find out what they

01:50 do in their day jobs.

01:52 Tom owns an electronics business on Sheerness High Street. Like any RNLI volunteer, if his

01:58 pager goes off, he has to up and leave when he's on call. He's been a volunteer for 20

02:04 years.

02:05 Basically this little box beeps. We don't really even look at it. We get a pre-page,

02:10 I get a pre-page anyway, which is the call coming into the Coast Guard, a possibility

02:14 of a shout. That'll start beeping at that point, shut the shop and get in the car.

02:20 Malcolm sells fishing equipment. He's been a volunteer for 14 years.

02:24 Well, it can be awkward sometimes. I've got a shop full of people and my pager goes off.

02:30 I have in the past said, "Right, everyone, sorry, you'll have to come back later." And

02:34 most people are understanding. I've done Christmas Day, I've done New Year's Day.

02:39 Just about to put my knife and fork into the back of a steak my missus has cooked for me

02:43 and I've had to go. So yeah, I've missed out on some nice dinners.

02:46 Stephen has been on the crew for 40 years and runs his own heating business.

02:51 I followed my dad down. So on a Sunday morning, I would come down with my dad. He would normally

02:57 go out on the boat training. That's when we had the Waverley. I think it was just the camaraderie

03:01 of it. It becomes part of you and you just carry on doing it. I mean, I always said to myself,

03:06 when that new boat comes, I'm going to retire or whatever or stand down. But that was the

03:13 boat previous to this boat. So yeah, there's something there that you just keep going.