Yacht club expresses concerns over lifeboat changes

The directors of a sailing club in the south of the Isle of Man have expressed concerns about plans for a nearby rescue boat to retire and not be replaced.

The Isle of Man Yacht Club (IOMYC) said decisions that may affect the safety of people using the island's waters deserved "open discussion, public understanding and appropriate scrutiny".

It comes after the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) confirmed earlier this month the Trent-class vessel based at the Port St Mary station would retire in 2028 and would not be replaced.

The IOMYC said the issue was not whether rescue cover will continue to exist, but whether the same level of response capability, resilience and speed of attendance could be maintained for incidents occurring in southern waters.

The RNLI has been invited to comment.

In a previous statement, the organisation said it was confident neighbouring stations on the island could provide overlapping cover and respond to incidents in the south.

"The removal of the boat would not leave it without rescue coverage," the RNLI added.

The yacht club is not the first to voice concerns about the news. A former Port St Mary crew member and an experienced skipper from North Wales who was rescued by the station in May also expressed sadness and nervousness at the loss of its all-weather lifeboat.

The club's directors said that while the station would retain its D-class inshore lifeboat, "there will be incidents where an all-weather lifeboat is the more appropriate asset to meet the rescue requirement".

They also described the waters around Langness, the Calf of Man, Chicken Rock and the southern approaches as "some of the most challenging around our coastline".

"There are strong tidal streams, overfalls, exposed sea conditions and fog," they said.

The directors added that commercial fishing activity mixed with recreational sailing combined to create an environment where conditions could deteriorate quickly and unexpectedly.

While welcoming the RNLI's commitment to safeguarding those at sea, the IOMYC said the scale of the change warranted greater transparency about the operational modelling, response-time analysis and risk assessments behind the decision.

"Such a significant alteration to lifesaving provision around our island should be accompanied by clear and accessible evidence, demonstrating how equivalent levels of protection will be maintained for those who operate in southern waters," the directors said.

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