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28th July 2021
It is with much sadness, that NCI Caister announces the passing of our friend and fellow watchkeeper, Tony Rodé, who died on Monday afternoon, 26th July, at the James Paget Hospital where he was admitted after collapsing, whilst on watch, on Saturday the 24th. Tony joined National Coastwatch in July 2014, and has been a valued and proactive member of the team at Caister, travelling from his home, near Thetford, every week to carry out his watches. His wife, Sally, would like to thank well-wishers that have passed the Station in Second Avenue and particularly, all those involved in trying to save his life, including the first responders who gave Tony CPR until the arrival of the Ambulance Service, the Coastguard Rescue Teams and the Police. Tony’s family have advised that he is to be cremated and his ashes scattered by the Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service in the very waters that he spent so many hours watching over. He will be sorely missed. May Tony rest in peace. 27 May 2021 Local Councillor and NCI Caister Watchkeeper Jerry says, "Thanks to everyone who has passed the station and either waved or said hello, since we recommenced our watchkeeping duties last month. It's nice of you all to show such interest in what we do. With the warmer weather nearly (!) upon us, we hope to see many holiday makers on Caister's lovely beaches. We will look out for the distressed and the vulnerable but hope you don't get into difficulty. If you do, we will alert our Search and Rescue partners to deal with your emergency. Enjoy yourselves but respect the water." 10th April 2021 NEWS UPDATE We hope that you are all safe and well during these unprecedented times? If we all remain vigilant and sensible (HANDS, FACE, SPACE, FRESH AIR) we will all be able to visit our lovely beaches with friends and family and take a dip in the sea or go water-sporting, as summer approaches. So, we are extremely happy to announce that we will resuming our visual surveillance activity, in support of Her Majesty's Coastguard, along the coastal margins looking out for the vulnerable and the distressed in the Caister area, together with impediments to public safety, pollution and our continued support to wildlife agencies. Whilst we await planning permission for a permanent look-out, we will be temporarily operating from a mobile unit, sited at the northern end of the car park in Second Avenue, by kind permission of the Caister Parish Council. Don't forget, if you are in any difficulty on the water, beach or dunes and do not have access to maritime VHF radio, you can call the Coastguard on 999 or 112 from your mobile and they will alert the appropriate agency. For further information about National Coastwatch, please visit www.nci.org.uk Follow us on Facebook too! www.facebook.com/NCIcaister NCI RECEIVES LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM HRH THE PRINCESS ROYAL 25th March 2020. The National Coastwatch Institution has received the following message of support from our Royal patron, Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal:
Buckingham Palace: As I have had to postpone my visits for this spring and summer, I did just want to record how much I appreciate the difficulties you all face over the next few weeks and months. Many of you will have found ways to adapt your skills, which are so important to the organisations you either work or volunteers for, to help in your own isolation or to help others cope better in those many jobs that cannot stop. I was planning another charities forum this summer to underline the value of understanding each others strengths and achievements as well as the added value of working better together. The next forum will be especially interesting, with many important lessons to be shared. I look forward to hearing from you and catching up as soon as possible. Thank you for all you do, wherever you are. Anne March 18th 2020. Press Release.
The Board of Trustees of The National Coastwatch Institution has reluctantly made the decision to suspend all current operations because of the ongoing Coronavirus situation. As from midnight on 18th March 2020, all NCI stations will suspend watchkeeping duties and will remain closed until further notice. The charity, which runs 56 lookout stations around the coast of England and Wales, reporting to HM Coastguard, is staffed by over 2,600 volunteers, many of whom fall into the age category identified by the Government as being most at risk. Watches at the lookouts will be resumed as soon as Government guidelines permit. Up-to-date information can be found on the NCI website. www.nci.org.uk. OUR OPERATIONAL ROLL-OUT 2010/11The National Coastwatch Institution station at Caister is unique amongst other NCI stations in that it is situated within operational lifeboat facilities as opposed to redundant Coastguard lookouts or other stand-alone buildings more usually occupied by the charity. That said, despite our unique location, we are no different to our NCI colleagues elsewhere; whilst we have a close working relationship with the independent Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service (CVLS) and have undertaken several joint training exercises, we adhere to strict NCI protocols regarding the recording and reporting of incidents and - unless directed by the Coastguard - do not get directly involved in Search and Rescue (SAR) operations.
The idea of an NCI station at Caister was first suggested by CVLS. The partnership between the two charities resulted from shared concerns regarding the diminishing visual watches being kept along the Norfolk coast and the subsequent closure of the Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination Centre in Great Yarmouth which further reduced local Coastguard capabilities. The Coastguard had not undertaken sea watch duties for many years; old lookouts at the harbour's mouth in Gorleston, on North Denes in Gt. Yarmouth and further up the coast at Winterton were vacated by 1990. NCI filled this gap taking over at Gorleston while a similar organisation - the Sea Safety Group (SSG) – took over the posts at North Denes (since closed in 2019) and Winterton together with another at Pakefield to the south of Lowestoft. After the initial approach there followed 18 months of trial watches, negotiation, recruitment and training before the first operational NCI watch at the Caister Lifeboat Heritage Centre (the old lifeboat shed) was mounted on June 4th 2011. |
Location:
Latitude: 52° 39' 78" N Longitude: 01° 43' 73" E OS Reference: TG 528.119 What3Words Delay.Forces.Winks Station Elevation: 15ft/5M Hours:
Summer (BST): 10:00 to 18:00hrs Winter (GMT): 09:00 to 15:00hrs Contact: National Coastwatch Institution Car Par Second Avenue Caister-on-Sea Great Yarmouth Norfolk NR30 5NN Station Manager: Frank Lappin phone: 07719413622 e-mail: [email protected] |
National Coastwatch Institution Registered Charity No. 1159975