30 May 2012

Ready for the Queens Diamond Jubilee Pageant

It has been a busy time for the Coxwain and Crew as they prepare the boat for its journey to London...Equally busy has been Company Secretary Derek George has completed over 38 pages of security paperwork and studied over 40 pages of briefing notes. With a major security clamp down in London finding accommodation and secure moorings has been especially challenging.

We have also set up a Facebook page so you can follow us and make comments.

The boat markings have been improved to make it more readily identifiable by people on the banks.

23 May 2012

The crew of Caister Lifeboat will be in the limelight on Sunday 3 June.

As well as taking part in the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the Thames, the story of Caister Lifeboat will be told on the BBC tv series Coast.

The programme scheduled on air at 9pm on BBC2 features interviews with the coxswain Paul Williams and the company secretary Derek George - a direct descendent of the founders of the Caister Beach Company.

Nick Crane, the presenter, and his crew were taken out in the Bernard Matthews II and then transferred to the inshore lifeboat Jim Davidson OBE - where he was taken to see the seals on South Scroby.

Throughout the Pageant on the Thames, watch our website for updates with photographs and videos... we hope share our experience of the whole event with you.

And listen to BBC Radio Norfolk as you click through our pages. Our crewman Andrew Turner works for the BBC by day - and will be reporting live into Radio Norfolk's programmes throughout the weekend.

22 May 2012

At this time of the year there is always lots to do and it's all hands to the "Mainbrace".

Derek is trying to get all the arrangements in place for the Queen's Pageant on the River Thames. Whilst getting the boat there will be competantly handled by the Cox and Crew there is overnight accommodation and a "Scarce" mooring site to be found..The latter is a major challenge because with the hundreds of vessels taking part there is a massive scramble for every inch of the dock and riverside.

A "Crack of dawn start" coach load of supporters is also visiting London on the day with the hope of seeing the boat go passed but with most roads around the river closed because of the tight security surrounding the event how to get to the river is really taxing the best of minds.

Another challenge is getting the boat back to Caister since the Thames Barrier is going to be a "Red Security Zone" and sailing through it and along the Thames will be strictly controlled.

Andrew is putting more "Caister Lifeboat" markings on the boat together with the Web details so people can contact us later. He is taking the opportunity to mark the Lifeboat Carriage as well so when it is left on the beach at Caister during a routine or training launch it will be readily identified by the public.

Mike has produced the latest ( and I think ) the best todate comprehensive" Friends" Newsletter and mailed it out... a copy has been sent to HMS Dauntless by e-mail to keep the crew informed of out latest news.......If you want to be a "Friend" see the details on our Contact Page

The Heritage Centre Guides are "Well Busy" making teas and coffees as well as providing information.Our new Video created with the help of Andrew is going down a treat.

June is by the door in the Main Lifeboat Shed and like the famous "Arkwright"she is "Encouraging sales" from our "Skipper Woodhouse" shop.Barbara is selling a similar range of items from the sales unit in the Heritage Centre.

Bob is always busy with the Young Crew, presently cutting the grass and personally tidying up the Flower bed..Removing litter is a constant challenge as is dealing hygenically with "Doggy poo". His constant challenge is keeping the concrete apron clear of sand which accumulates each time the boat, trailer and tractor are hosed clean after each launching.

Jason is well ahead organising the "Ball in the Shed". 

Andrew and Andy are Marketing the Annual "Lifeboat Beer Festival" and making sure the variety of beers will offer the best to the many tasters we hope will visit....See the Events page for further details.


And finally.Colin is progressing slowly, but diligently, with the plans and proposals for the extension to house our new Inshore Rib.....Watch this space and keep up to date by looking at the special page we have created for our new boat

27 Apr 2012

The Worshipful Master of the East Norfolk Lodge and Julie invite you to come and help support the Caister Lifeboat by attending:-


The Ball in The Boat Shed


The Date is 16th June 2012


The Time is 7.30 for 8.00p.m. sit down.


The Venue is The Caister Lifeboat Shed Tan Lane


The cost is £27.00


Dress Code is Dinner Dress


Dancing until 1.00 a.m.


Menu


Homemade Chicken Liver Pate served with Caramelised Onion Relish & Mini Toasts


>>>>


Supreme of Chicken Breast


Stuffed with Cream Cheese & Asparagus


served in a Creamy Champagne Sauce


Complimented by


A Panache' of Fresh Vegetables


Lyonnaise & Crushed New Potatoes


>>>>


Homemade Summer Pudding


served with


Creme Fraise


>>>>


A Selection of Cheese


served with Fine Biscuits & Celery


>>>>


Coffee & Mints


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Please reply by 30th May at the latest.


Please reserve …….places       I enclose a cheque for £……….


Send payment to Jason Delf


17 Oxnead Drive, Caister on Sea, Great Yarmouth, NR30 5PZ


Please make cheques payable to East Norfolk Lodge.


Let us know of any special dietary requirements.

22 Apr 2012

Caister Marconi radio station contacts 40 countries 

Radio hams at the Caister Lifeboat Visitor Centre in Norfolk managed to contact 480 other radio amateurs in 40 different countries on Saturday 21 April when they took part in the annual International Marconi Day to mark the inventor's birthday. 

Using the call GB0CMS and a mixture of Morse code and telephony (speech), notable contacts included hams in Australia, Barbados, Newfoundland, Canada and the USA. Other contacts included special Marconi stations in the UK, Italy, Austria and Iceland. 

Contacts closer to home included many other radio amateurs around the UK, including some of the other Marconi stations in Holyhead, Daventry and The Lizard in Cornwall – home to some of Marconi's early work. 

The Norfolk Amateur Radio Club (NARC) ran the all-day special event station at Caister Lifeboat Visitor Centre to commemorate the village's original Marconi Wireless Station, which was established at Caister in 1900. The station was in a house in the High Street known as Pretoria Villa and its original purpose was to communicate with ships in the North Sea and the Cross Sand lightship. 

On Saturday, the closest to Guglielmo Marconi's birthday, stations around the world were set up at sites with historical links to the inventor's work. These include Poldhu in England; Cape Cod Massachusetts; Glace Bay, Nova Scotia; Villa Griffone, Bologna, Italy and many others. 

NARC public relation officer Steve Nichols, who organised the event, said: “This was our best result ever in the three years we have been operating. The equipment worked flawlessly and sunspots, which are needed for good conditions, were plentiful. 

“Considering we set the whole station up on the Saturday morning, including erecting the two antennas, installing the radios and computers, and had it all taken down again by the end of the day that's quite a feat – I think Marconi would have been proud! 

“And even the weather held off – it only started raining as we loaded the last pieces of equipment back into the cars. Our thanks go to Caister Lifeboat for letting us set up the station at the centre.” 

Technical information for radio magazines

The equipment used was 100W from an Icom 756 Pro3 (40m) and an Icom 7400 (20m). Antennas were a W5GI “mystery antenna” dipole on 40m and a G0KYA-designed end-fed half wave vertical for 20m. 

About Norfolk Amateur Radio Club:

The club has more than 100 members, a strong history dating back to the 1950s and has a very active calendar of talks, events, special event stations and courses. 

It meets at 7.00pm on Wednesdays at the Sixth Form Common Room, City of Norwich School, Eaton Road, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 6PP, with formal proceedings starting at 7.45pm. 

The programme alternates weekly between talks or club challenges, and informal meetings with Morse tuition, electronic construction and “Bright Sparks” events for youngsters. 

Further history of the original Marconi Wireless Station 

The Caister station was connected by land line to Gt Yarmouth Post Office and the Caister Coast Guard Station. The main aerial mast behind the house was 150 feet high, the aerial wire being suspended between this and a slightly shorter mast situated on land where Lacon Road was later built. 

The large front room of the house contained the main apparatus and was also used as the operating room. The engine for charging the accumulators was situated in a shed adjoining the house and the accumulators themselves were housed in a specially constructed annex. 

The remainder of the premises were used as a dwelling house for the officer-in-charge.

The range of communication was 150 to 200 miles on the long wave (600m) and 100 miles on the short wave (300m). 

In 1909 all the Marconi coastal stations were taken over by the Post Office. In 1911 the Caister station was used to train lightship men in the use of telegraphy equipment. 

In January 1915 the telegraph equipment on the Cross Sand lightship was transferred to the Parlour lightship and the Caister station was changed to ‘general working’ and not used for ship-to-shore work. Public use of the telegram facility provided at Caister was suspended for the duration of the WW1. 

In 1921 plans were made for the reinstallation of wireless on Trinity House lightships, but this time the new wireless telephony was to replace telegraphy (Morse). New technology made the Caister station out of date and it finally closed in 1929. The masts were taken down and a few years later the house became the village Police Station.

News release by NARC

14 Apr 2012

Why not come and see Captain Percy when you visit our Heritage Centre. He is a man of the salty sea who now sits patiently awaiting the pleasure of your company!

04 Apr 2012

Good news.

Following emergency work carried out by Dutch Engineers to replace the port side broken drive shaft the Bernard Matthews 2 Offshore Lifeboat is back on Station. The Engineers had the technical challenge of carefully aligning the Engine prior to fitting the shaft. An essential part of the repair to reduce the risk of a further failure.

Carlus Hageman from the Habbeke shipyard where the boat was originally built ,brought the propshaft over by ferry and actually fitted it. The shaft itself is made from extremely light but strong carbon fibre. It has been loaned by the Dutch KNRM .... there is a three month wait once a replacement has been ordered.

It was an extremely difficult recovery of the boat on its return to Station and the Tractor and Carriage had to travel some distance South along the beach to enable it to operate in the rough sea crashing over the shore line.

02 Apr 2012

On Sunday April 1st during routine training and sea trials the Bernard Matthews suffered a damaged prop shaft. The crew managed to reach the local ship yard and replacement parts have been ordered from Holland.

17 Mar 2012

In September 1911 the Yarmouth Mercury, under the headlines "Caister Lifeboatmen Strike" wrote about a woersening situation affecting numerous RNLI boats along the Norfolk and Suffolk coastline.

The action at Caister was the result of a long running dispute between the men and the RNLI which came to a head following the launch of the lifeboat in August that year.

The Mercury report said that on the Tuesday afternoon ( the 29th August.) a trawler the Mary Queen went ashore on the Cockle Sands and the Lifeboat Covent Garden was launched to assist. Some daysafter the steamer the Elsie of Hull went aground on Scroby Sands but when the crew assembled at the shed they found it had been locked.

At this time there were two lifeboats at Caister,the Coven Garden and the Nancy Lucy. For several years there had been problems with the RNLI about what the RNLI considered "Unnecessary Launches" . On occassion more than one station would launch boats to enable crews to get their Launch Payment (4 shillings 20p in Summer and 6 shillings 30p in Winter.)

On more and more occassions the RNLI withheld payments.In Augut a Member of the RNLI had actually been present when what had been considered to be an unnecessary Launch had occurred and payment subsequently not paid.

The men had a meeting and said they would not respond until payments were made. The RNLI locked the shed and refused the men entry to get their boat to carry out rescues...The men of the Elsie of Hull were at great peril as their boat remained aground despite sending up flares and rockets.

Unable to launch even though his crew were assembled and ready the Coxwain had no option but to contact the Coxwain of the nearby Gorleston boat to assist.

The "Dispute" lasted some weeks until November 1911 when the crew agreed to launch at any time "If life was in danger"pending an Enquiry.

Some weeks later the "Mercury" reported that the "Strike Fever had vanished" and the normal service was restored.

The enquiry made it clear that only launches authorised by the local RNLI secretary would result in the crews being paid. This had the affect of reducing multiple responses by numerous boats to the same incident even when there was little chance of being able to assist.

14 Mar 2012

The crew of the inshore lifeboat recently visited the Sea Palling and exercised with the Inshore crew to trial a beach trailer for the new inshore lifeboat due to be delivered by Easter.

The trailer will offer better and quicker responses as the new inshore boat will be able to start its engine before entering the water and drive straight out of the trailer. Its also a big improvement safety wise as the current crew have stand outside of the boat in the swell and push it off the trailer then climb in before starting the engine.

The trailer will cost around £6,500 and donations towards this equipment are very welcome. 

The Caister Crew wish to thank everyone at Sea Palling for their help and cooperation.

05 Mar 2012

The Caister Bernard Matthews Lifeboat is fitted with an AIS beacon which means when at sea its location can be tracked on the following website:
www.marinetraffic.com/ais

28 Feb 2012

The Coxwain is confirming the last minute details for the Offshore Lifeboat Mid-Life Refit by local company Goodchild Marine...If all goes to plan dry docking date is scheduled for the 15th October....arrangements for the Jet refurbishment or replacement...if necessary..are well advanced.

11 Feb 2012

After the stunning success of our concert last year we are pleased that the Iceni Choir will be returning this year on Sunday the 8th July. 

11 Feb 2012

The Chairman of the lifeboat has had a meeting with the Deputy Lieutenant of Norfolk and the Caister Volunteer Lifeboat Service has been put forward for the Queens Award for Voluntary Service.... Watch this space.

11 Feb 2012

Sadly because of the increase in insurance costs the Lifeboat will no longer be able to carry out training with the MOD....Co-operation in an emergency is not affected.