Photo: Simon Bone

British Divers Marine Life Rescue has taken possession of a 5.8m RIB - the first boat dedicated entirely to marine animal rescue in Devon and Cornwall.

The £20,000 Tornado is fully equipped with GPS, radio and safety equipment. It was given its first run at Penzance on 14 January, where it will be stationed initially before being moved to an inland Cornish site for quick transport to northern or southern coastlines.

The majority of BDMLR's rescues involve strandings of whales, dolphins, porpoises and seals, mainly through navigation error or sickness.

"Cornwall and Devon receive a high number of stranded dolphins, seals and other marine mammals each year and we have decided to station a 5.8m Tornado RIB in the region to improve our response to these incidents," said Alan Knight, BDMLR Chairman, who delivered the new boat from its builder in Southend-on-Sea.

"The boat will provide us with the ability to get medics into otherwise inaccessible locations to attend to strandings, as well to as act as a safety boat during incidents and help when we are using our pontoon system when refloating large whales."

Dave Jarvis, BDMLR South West Cornwall Area Coordinator, said: "Cornwall has been very busy for rescues over the last twelve months. We have been inundated with seal pup rescues and have also had a number of dolphin rescues to keep us particularly busy...This fantastic new boat will enable us to provide a more complete rescue response, and we are very grateful to all those who have raised funds or donated money."

Money for the purchase included a £7000 donation from main sponsor Dive Master Insurance, which has supported BDMLR for more than a decade, and fund-raising events which included a £2000 sponsored skydive by BDML volunteers.

The boat has been named Josh, after the son of long-term BDMLR supporter Jim Hayes. Josh died last year of a longstanding illness, aged 12.

BDMLR, a voluntary service with charitable status (Charity No. 803438), was formed by divers in 1988 following a fatal seals epidemic around the Wash, in East Anglia. It has developed into a 24-hour rescue service, with 3000 volunteers around the country.

The organisation trains some 300 marine mammal medics annually, and has invested in 20 rescue pontoons situated around the UK for re-floating stranded whales and dolphins. Five rescue boats are stationed in the South West, South East, North East and Scotland.

Related links
BDMLR website


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