Kilkeel RNLI’s new Shannon class lifeboat, Bobby Cameron, will be officially named by its donor at a ceremony at the Co Down lifeboat station on Saturday 22 August. The all-weather lifeboat, which entered service in June, was donated by Margaret Cameron and will be named in memory of her late brother, Robert.
Bobby Cameron replaces Kilkeel RNLI’s Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat Frank William Walton, which served the area for 20 years before its retirement. The arrival of the Shannon marks a significant change for the station, with Kilkeel’s volunteer crew undergoing months of intensive training as they transitioned from operating an inshore lifeboat to an all-weather vessel.
The Shannon class is the RNLI’s first modern all-weather lifeboat to use waterjets rather than conventional propellers. Designed in-house by the charity, the class combines speed and manoeuvrability with technology developed for modern search-and-rescue operations.
Speaking ahead of the ceremony, Kilkeel RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager John Fisher described the naming as “a very special day” for the station.
“The work that the lifeboat crew have put into getting this wonderful new lifeboat on service has been incredible, and this event will be the culmination of many months of hard work and dedication,” he said. “We were honoured to welcome our donor Margaret Cameron to the station when the lifeboat arrived, and now we will have the honour of her officially naming our lifeboat.”
Fisher added that the station would be “proud custodians” of Bobby Cameron, which will serve with Kilkeel’s volunteer crew on future search-and-rescue operations.
The vessel is also a legacy lifeboat, carrying the names of RNLI supporters within the lettering and numbers that make up its identifying number.
