Recruits needed to join life-saving volunteers in Cornwall
“Help…
help!” “We’re
on the rocks and the tide’s coming in…”
“Someone’s fallen over the cliff edge. He’s hurt… I can’t get to him…”
Every day, around the coast, hundreds of people make a 999 call to Her Majesty’s Coastguard.
Whether it’s someone out of their depth in the sea, or who has fallen off a cliff or is stuck in the mud and unable to free themselves, it’s a Coastguard Rescue Team that will be on hand to help.
As the emergency service responsible for coordinating maritime search and rescue in the UK, HM Coastguard needs volunteers for its rescue teams. Ordinary people doing an extraordinary job.
Coastguard Rescue Teams can be called into action any time, day or night. There are 3,500 volunteers in 347 teams around the coast of the UK, and you could be one of them in Cornwall.
Andrew Morris joined the Mullion Coastguard Rescue Team last year. He said that as someone who grew up in that coastal community it was almost inevitable he would put something back into it.
'My
grandfather was a Coastguard harbourmaster,’ he said. ‘When we moved back to the village, I knew that
I wanted to volunteer in the community. The Coastguard was the natural thing to
do.
‘What we do here, what I do here makes a difference. It’s about doing something for someone else. When we’re out on a shout we’re potentially saving a life and making a difference.’
Coastguard Rescue Officers help search for and rescue people in difficulties, be it on cliffs, stuck in mud or in water and also missing people. They report and deal with pollution and other hazards and work with other emergency services and local authorities during major incidents.
Andrew said that being a Coastguard is very much about teamwork: ‘I’m obviously still new. And although I’ve been through all the training – and it’s first class – there’s still moments when I’m not sure. The camaraderie is massive and means I’m never afraid to ask questions about the things I’m not sure of. And I always feel like someone’s got my back, just as I’ve got theirs.’
Being a Coastguard Rescue Officer on the frontline of an emergency is a responsibility, a challenge and a privilege. Andrew says there’s nothing like it.
He said: ‘What we do matters. We’re doing something that will make the difference to someone else’s life, we might be saving a life.’
To find out more about joining a team like the one Andrew is in, email area11@mcga.gov.uk
Head of Coastal Operations Pete Mizen said: ‘If you live in a coastal community, you’ll know how vital the Coastguard Rescue Team is to the area. These are people who are prepared to react day or night - often in matters of life and death. What they do matters. And we need more people like them to join.
‘Coastguard
Rescue Officers are trained in first aid and a variety of technical rescue
techniques, depending on their location. Aside from giving your time to a
worthy cause, volunteering has a number of key benefits for your career too. It
can help you stand out from the crowd and learn practical transferrable skills.
‘If you’d like to join, we’ll ensure you have regular training, and all we ask in return is that you are within a few minutes of the Coastguard base, and available to respond at most times.’
Have you got what it takes to be a Coastguard?
To search. To rescue. To save.
https://www.gov.uk/volunteer-as-a-coastguard/what-to-expect-as-a-volunteer
“Someone’s fallen over the cliff edge. He’s hurt… I can’t get to him…”
Every day, around the coast, hundreds of people make a 999 call to Her Majesty’s Coastguard.
Whether it’s someone out of their depth in the sea, or who has fallen off a cliff or is stuck in the mud and unable to free themselves, it’s a Coastguard Rescue Team that will be on hand to help.
As the emergency service responsible for coordinating maritime search and rescue in the UK, HM Coastguard needs volunteers for its rescue teams. Ordinary people doing an extraordinary job.
Coastguard Rescue Teams can be called into action any time, day or night. There are 3,500 volunteers in 347 teams around the coast of the UK, and you could be one of them in Cornwall.
Andrew Morris joined the Mullion Coastguard Rescue Team last year. He said that as someone who grew up in that coastal community it was almost inevitable he would put something back into it.
‘What we do here, what I do here makes a difference. It’s about doing something for someone else. When we’re out on a shout we’re potentially saving a life and making a difference.’
Coastguard Rescue Officers help search for and rescue people in difficulties, be it on cliffs, stuck in mud or in water and also missing people. They report and deal with pollution and other hazards and work with other emergency services and local authorities during major incidents.
Andrew said that being a Coastguard is very much about teamwork: ‘I’m obviously still new. And although I’ve been through all the training – and it’s first class – there’s still moments when I’m not sure. The camaraderie is massive and means I’m never afraid to ask questions about the things I’m not sure of. And I always feel like someone’s got my back, just as I’ve got theirs.’
Being a Coastguard Rescue Officer on the frontline of an emergency is a responsibility, a challenge and a privilege. Andrew says there’s nothing like it.
He said: ‘What we do matters. We’re doing something that will make the difference to someone else’s life, we might be saving a life.’
To find out more about joining a team like the one Andrew is in, email area11@mcga.gov.uk
Head of Coastal Operations Pete Mizen said: ‘If you live in a coastal community, you’ll know how vital the Coastguard Rescue Team is to the area. These are people who are prepared to react day or night - often in matters of life and death. What they do matters. And we need more people like them to join.
‘If you’d like to join, we’ll ensure you have regular training, and all we ask in return is that you are within a few minutes of the Coastguard base, and available to respond at most times.’
Have you got what it takes to be a Coastguard?
To search. To rescue. To save.
https://www.gov.uk/volunteer-as-a-coastguard/what-to-expect-as-a-volunteer
