Even The UK Coastguard Has Money Problems
Over in the mighty UK, the Coastguard (which is just one word over there) is facing the same problems as we are. No money and a growing mission. Apparently the Coastguard used to be a workforce of members who were paid at an hourly rate, but now they consist of a mostly volunteer workforce. To be exact, they employ over 1,200 people, but are supported by 3,500 volunteer Coastguard Rescue Officers. Basically these men and women are being told, “not only do you not get paid, but you can’t use the equipment either….unless it’s and emergency. Here’s the article from This is Hampshire.net:
LIVES could be put at risk by cuts that mean coastguard staff will no longer patrol the south’s accident hotspots, it has been claimed.
A whistleblower has revealed how lifesavers were told just hours before their shifts yesterday not to report for duty where thousands of sun-worshippers took to their boats and beaches to enjoy scorching temperatures.
Instead they were told they would be paged if there was an emergency.
The Southampton-based Maritime and Coastguard Agency has admitted the cuts will affect the entire UK and are to save fuel costs and “other financial implications” because it “has had to take on a raft of cost-cutting measures for its contribution towards tackling the budget deficit”.
But the Daily Echo’s source said: “Not having coastguard patrols at peak times will put the public at risk.
“There are hundreds of examples where if the coastguard rescue team had not been there within minutes because we were on patrol, people would have died.
“Now we can only respond to incidents through our pagers. This is dangerous when the beaches and coast are very crowded due to the hot weather. If you have an accident and you call 999 and there is a coastguard required, this will now take at least 30 minutes or longer to get to you.”
It means that dozens of coastguards based at stations across the south including Southampton, Hill Head and Lymington, who usually scour hotspots for potential accidents, will only be paged if an accident happens.
It will also affect inland accidents because the Southampton and Hill Head provide back-up support for South Central Ambulance when paramedics can’t reach a remote spot or have high demands of calls.
The rescue teams say this dangerous move could put hundreds of lives at risk because it will take longer for crews to reach the person needing help.
The coastguard insider quoted the case of a man who had his leg sheared off by a boat propeller offHythe Marina a couple of years ago. His life was saved at the accident only because the people on patrol could get to him to help the rapid response paramedic within two minutes.
Our whistleblower, who has worked as a coastguard for 15 years, said: “I was due to go out on patrol yesterday lunch time but I was called in the morning saying to stay put and keep on the pager. What if somebody needs urgent help now or later? I would usually be five or six minutes away now I am 30 minutes.
“This move will definitely cost lives.
We all believe our service has been undermined in less than a week after the emergency budget was announced.”
RNLI lifeboat crews across the south coast had not been told officially about the cuts.
One RNLI station manager, who asked not to be named, said: “When we have a shout coastguards will be there on shore to help. If they can’t get there in time, this will be serious.
This would not be a clever move to make.”
An RNLI lifeboat crew member, who also did not want to be named, said the coastguards were invaluable.
He said: “Their role is vital. They are the missing link in the chain of command which is vital in our job. They are all first aid trained and can do cliff rescues, they also help us when we come in to liaise with the police, ambulance and fire service.”
A spokesman for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, said: “The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has had to take on a raft of cost-cutting measures for its contribution towards tackling the budget deficit.
“The coastguards will still be able to react to emergency call-outs in the normal way. However we are reviewing some of the work that coastguard rescue officers do and in some cases this may affect patrols.”
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