London MRSC: The Coastguard on the Thames
But did you know that the Coastguard is also responsible for Search and Rescue (SAR) operations in some of the UK’s tidal waters, that is, those affected by tides?
Which means that people’s safety on Britain’s most famous river, that winds its way through the heart of the country’s capital, falls under the remit of the national maritime 999 service for search and rescue.
The Thames Barrier as seen from London MRSC |
From a place
within eyeshot of the Thames Barrier, a small team of Coastguard operational
staff work hard to keep London’s residents safe on the Thames.
Senior Maritime
Operations Officer Paul spoke about his role and the unique experience of
coordinating maritime search and rescue on the Thames.
“The Thames is
actually a very dangerous river,” Paul, who spent 32 years working as a response
officer in the Kent Police before retiring in 2019 and turning to help the
Coastguard.
“It’s fast and
it’s like a washing machine, you will likely be pulled under very quickly. So
our main focus is on a quick response – if you can’t get there fast, the
outcome is almost inevitably tragic.
“It’s a unique
set-up within the Coastguard as we are the only operations room that works in
and from a port and we work very closely with other emergency services and
local authorities.”
The tidal
Thames is approximately 95 miles long and flows from Teddington Weir in west
London, under the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge and through Kent and Essex before
joining the North Sea.
London MRSC from the banks of the Thames |
Coastguard
operators work alongside the Port of London Authority (PLA) at the London
Maritime Rescue Sub-Coordination Centre (MRSC) to keep watch over the area.
London Coastguard keep watch all the way to Canvey Island, at the mouth of the
Thames, from this site.
Paul, who has
spent his adult life working to protect or rescue others, said: “It’s a big
area and, while we have eyes on the river to monitor it, we work with other
partners to ensure safety across it. We work closely with the RNLI, London Fire
Brigade vessels, Police Marine Unit, PLA vessels and other vessels on the River
– the passenger vessels have always helped by being our eyes and ears and even
playing a valuable part in rescues.
“We’re one big
team in London.
“The PLA look
after traffic control, security, navigational safety and the environment while
we work alongside them to ensure safety of the river’s users, and the
Coastguard has primacy (automatic lead organisation) over Search and Rescue.
“And we have four
RNLI stations to call upon at Tower, Chiswick, Gravesend and Teddington – three
of which have full-time staff members to deal with the number of incidents that
we ask them to respond to.
“It can be a
challenge as, sadly, many of the incidents involve issues of mental health, but
I would still only want to do this job here. It is tough, fast-paced and
non-stop but it is also incredibly rewarding to go home and know that you
played a role in keeping London safe.”
Paul is part of
a small team that comprises of fellow Senior Maritime Operation Officers Ben,
Chris, Ross, Gareth and Jules – recent recipient of the Young Achiever of the
Year at the 2022 Control Room Awards – alongside their manager Terry.