TROUBLED RYDE INSHORE RESCUE AIMS TO BE BACK ON SERVICE ‘BY EASTER’

Ryde Inshore Rescue says it hopes to be re-declared as an asset to His Majesty’s Coastguard by Easter, enabling the charity to resume its life-saving service.

It was in October last year that Island Echo exclusively revealed that the Appley-based organisation had been stood down by HM Coastguard, meaning the independent lifeboat service was no longer being tasked to search and rescue emergencies on the Solent.

The current situation means that if there is an emergency on Ryde Sands, such as last week, the nearest lifeboat now comes from either Bembridge, Portsmouth, Gosport or Cowes. This is something that has happened multiple times over the past 18 months or so, even before the declared asset status was stripped, due to the unavailability of Ryde’s volunteer crew

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Last year the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said it was working with Ryde Inshore Rescue to bring their lifeboats back into service ‘as soon as possible’.

Now, it has been revealed by the charity that it hopes to pass inspections in time for the busy Easter period, in late April.

The news comes amid rumours of a takeover of the charity by an unknown individual – something Ryde Inshore’s Trustees have been quick to quash, stating that such information is completely untrue.

It’s said that the volunteers’ focus is now on being fully prepared to return to service by Easter, but that can only happen if approved by HM Coastguard.

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Since being taken off the run, Ryde Inshore Rescue says its team have been “actively training, updating processes and ensuring all necessary paperwork is in place”.

Ryde Inshore Rescue’s origins date back to the 1950s, with the association with HM Coastguard as a search and rescue asset forged in 1969. By 1980 the lifeguard unit had transformed into a full inshore rescue lifeboat service and became a registered charity, growing to run 2 inshore lifeboats by 2007.