Meet Your Coastguards: Crosby Coastguard Rescue Team
The coastal town of Crosby lies within the Merseyside area of Liverpool, with stirring sea views giving way to artist Sir Antony Gormley’s installation artwork and the Seaforth windfarm.
The Crosby Coastguard Rescue Team (CRT) covers the wider Merseyside area, from Formby to Warrington, and includes 11 Coastguard Rescue Officers, a Station Officer, and a Deputy Station Officer.
We spoke to Crosby Station Officer Garry, and Coastguard Rescue Officers Phillip and Damien.
Why did you join HM Coastguard?
Originally from Prestwich in Manchester, Coastguard Rescue Officer Damien says his hometown isn’t exactly known for its maritime connections. However, he’s been a UK-based scuba diver for almost 20 years and after moving to Crosby in 2017, it felt like a good way to give back to the community and become more involved in local events. “The coastguard offers an opportunity to learn new skills and adapt old ones, and being part of supportive team is a big attraction,” he says.
Fellow CRO Phillip joined the coastguard so that he could free up his house for his wife, a registered childminder. He says: “There was no peace and quiet in my house during my time at home from my main job as a rope access supervisor offshore on oil and gas platforms.”
Station Officer Garry joined the coastguard after seeing a rescue unfold on TV. It caught his interest, and as a lover of the coast, he felt a strong maritime connection. Somewhat serendipitously, he noticed an HM Coastguard rescue vehicle in the car park at his work, and soon discovered that the Deputy Station officer worked in the same building! After a chat, he was volunteering to join.
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| Damien, Coastguard Rescue Officer with Crosby CRT |
What is the most unusual incident you have attended?
For Garry, it was a case of mistaken identity, when the crew were tasked to search for a missing person, which later turned out to be an inflatable doll. “Liverpool is a popular place for stag and hen do’s,” he jokes.
Damian is quick to point out that no two jobs are the same, with any shout having the potential to be unusual. He particularly recalls an older lady whose mobility scooter had ran out of battery a mile along a coastal path during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He says: “It was during the pandemic, and it was her first time out on a new scooter her family had bought her. Her funny comments really helped to lighten the mood at what was such a busy time for our team.”
Phillip remembers when he was waved down by an agitated member of the public who was concerned about a lost animal, which turned out to be a homing pigeon!
What is the most unusual place you’ve been when your pager has gone off?
“When you’re a Coastguard Rescue Officer, your pager knows no boundaries! We are a busy team, and at the height of the summer we can have back-to-back jobs all day and night,” says Damian.
“Missed birthdays, parties and family events are all part of the role. Without supportive families, we couldn’t do what we do,” he adds.
For Garry, these interruptions of ordinary daily life have become exactly that – ordinary. His wife no longer really notices when he dashes out mid-meal. “I can come back in after being out for several hours over night and she says “Oh, have you been on a shout?” he adds.
Phillip adds that for him, a pager going off while tied to a rooftop chimney pressure washing could well be the winner.
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| Garry, Station Officer with Crosby CRT |
What is the most challenging part of your role?
“Personalities and their differences can be a challenge to manage,” says Garry. As Station Officer, it’s his role to help find common ground between team members and shape the team into a skilled, strong, and effective unit.
“Understandably, handling fatalities on the coast is both physically and emotionally challenging,” says Damien. “As a team, we support and encourage each other to be open about any difficult thoughts, and we prepare ourselves while attending to these incidents.”
“There’s also the difficult task of getting a good night’s sleep after the excitement of a tasking”, adds Phillip, who sometimes struggles to recover the day after.
Which local beach is your favourite and why?
Garry and Phillip’s favourite beach is Crosby’s own. They both say that the team are very lucky to have such a nice vista so close to the station. “I can sit at the station and look at the scenery, with the Welsh hills in the background,” Garry shares.
For Damian, Crosby beach’s sandy dunes, which harbour the remains of a war-era anti-aircraft battery, are a great place to walk his dog. His favourite time here is early spring, when the beach is quiet and the air is crisp.
What do you enjoy most about being a member of the team?
“We’re a group of like-minded individuals who enjoy being out and about in the coastal environment. We do a serious role, and we do respond to people in distress, but it is always done from a caring point of view,” says Damian.
The team puts great emphasis on looking out for itself too: making sure that emotional and physical wellbeing is always carefully considered and checked on after callouts. It’s made stronger by the support given between the team, both as officers and as friends.
“I really enjoy the team spirit and we have people from all walks of life and professions who all come together to form the team,” says Garry, while Phillip relishes the banter between a team that always make sure everyone gets home safe.
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| Damien and Phillip during a mud exercise on Crosby Beach |
What new skills have you learned as a CRO?
Searching for vulnerable missing people is a large part of what Coastguard Rescue Teams do, using training that gives Coastguard Rescue Officers the confidence to search in either urban or rural settings, day or night.
Damian says: “We could be deployed to an isolated beach in the middle of the night during one job, and in a busy city dockland the next. We search with the sole purpose of bringing individuals home safely.”
“I’m a trained in mud rescue, so I really enjoy getting out in those conditions, but the main thing for me is to have learned to be patient, and how to deal with pressure,” adds Phillip.
Garry suggests that there are many useful skills that officers gain over their time with the coastguard, though most notably these include: team leadership, incident management and communications, knots (lots of knots) and technical rescue skills.
When you’re not working or volunteering as a CRO, what do you enjoy doing?
Damian’s a keen scuba diver and is happiest while trekking around the UK coastline in the summer, or exploring the Lakes, Pennines, and Peak District in Winter.
Garry, meanwhile, loves nothing more than to get out and about on his two scooters, a Vespa and a Lambretta. When he’s not on shift, Phillip enjoys his free time relaxing with his wife and two dogs.
What do you do for a living?
Garry works for the Health and Safety Executive, while Damian is a psychiatric nurse working to help under 18’s living with severe mental health problems. Phillip runs an offshore rope access company and a pressure washing business while ashore.
