HRH The Duke of Kent officially opened the RNLI’s first permanent inland lifeboat station at Carrybridge this afternoon.
The lifeboat station has been fully operational on Upper Lough Erne in County Fermanagh since March this year.
Officially declaring the lifeboat station open following a Service of Dedication, HRH The Duke of Kent paid tribute to the 40 volunteers at Enniskillen RNLI. He said it was always a pleasure to talk with those who give up their time to support lifesaving rescues and to those who carry them out.
‘They do it because they are courageous, selfless, trustworthy and reliable – they embody the values of the RNLI,’ he said. ‘They give freely and expect little in return.
Their actions serve as a heart-warming reminder that, today, there are people of all ages and backgrounds that are willing to make personal sacrifices in the name of saving lives. So I would like to thank all of the volunteers here, and their supportive families, for everything they do to support the RNLI’s lifesaving mission.’
The opening of the new boathouse comes 13 years after the station was first established on Upper Lough Erne. During those years the volunteer lifeboat crew was housed in temporary accommodation.
Tom Bailey, Lifeboat Operations Manager at Carrybridge said he was proud and pleased to accept the lifeboat station on behalf of the crew and station personnel:
‘In 2001, Enniskillen became home to the RNLI’s first inland lifeboat station based on Lower Lough Erne. Due to the overall size and complexity of the lough and its high leisure usage, the decision was taken by the RNLI in 2002 to base a second lifeboat on the Upper Lough here at Carrybridge that would work in conjunction with the original lifeboat station on the Lower Lough at Killadeas. With two bases, two inshore lifeboats and two rescue water craft, the station has since proved to be one of the busiest in Ireland. Last year alone, Enniskillen RNLI launched 59 times bringing 57 people to safety. Some 32 of those services were carried out in the dark while the crew spent 262 service hours on the water.’
When the RNLI was actively seeking a location for a new lifeboat station at Carrybridge, the late George Johnston kindly donated a site on his farmland which fronted the River Erne. He was remembered in the ceremony by Archie Birrell, chair of the Lough Erne Fundraising Branch: ‘None of this would have been possible without the generous donation of the very land that this station stands on, and for this we are incredibly thankful to the late George Johnston whose generosity has made all of this possible.’
The donation was gratefully accepted by the RNLI which then proceeded with the assistance of Mr Johnston’s children George and Anna who attended the opening ceremony, to obtain full planning permission to build the new station.
The build which took little over a year to complete was carried out by Omagh based Woodvale Construction and handed over to the RNLI on the 25 March.
In order to facilitate the project, the local community helped the charity raise £60,000 towards the cost.
The building is constructed with rendered blockwork walls, a zinc roof and Iroko timber main doors. It has been designed to complement the local architectural vernacular, with precedence being taken from the rural and agricultural structures which typify this area of County Fermanagh.
While traditional in appearance, the building includes some of the latest environmentally friendly technologies, including a ground source heat pump to provide low-carbon heat to the building as well as solar photo-voltaic panels which generate a portion of the building’s electrical demand. The lifeboat station is the RNLI’s first specially built inland waterways buildings and is something of a trailblazer in certain areas including background heating within the boathall itself to prevent vital fluids on the lifeboat freezing during cold winter periods.
The modern lifeboat station is located close to the lough to allow for an efficient launch of the inshore lifeboat and rescue water craft. It also houses the associated launching tractor and equipment, full crew changing facilities, a workshop, office and training room.
The Very Reverend Kenneth Hall, Dean of St Macartin’s Cathedral, Reverend TH Samuel McGuffin, Lakelands District Superintendent, Methodist Church in Ireland and The Right Reverend Monsignor Peter O’Reilly, St Michael’s Church, Enniskillen, led the Service of Dedication.
Among the platform party were Anna and George Johnston who handed over the boathouse into the care of the RNLI, David Delamer, Chairman of the RNLI Council for Ireland who accepted the lifeboat station on behalf of the RNLI, Tom Bailey, Lifeboat Operations Manager at Carrybridge who accepted the new building on behalf of Enniskillen RNLI and HRH The Duke of Kent who officially opened the lifeboat station. The platform party also included Sam McCreery, President of Enniskillen RNLI who opened proceedings, Archie Birrell, Chairman of the Lough Erne Fundraising Group, and Darren Byers, RNLI Divisional Operations Manager for Northern Ireland.
