RNLI Lifeboats have been guarding the dangerous Burry Estuary, which includes Carmarthen Bay eastward to Loughor together with the north coastline of the Gower Peninsula since 1852. The first Lifeboat was at Llanelly. It was provided by the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners Benevolent Society. The boat was 26 feet long by 6 feet 4ins. pulled by 8 oars double banked. In 1854 the SFMBS handed over the boat to the newly named RNLI. The crews of this Lifeboat did sterling work over the next nine years including rescues at the extraordinary Broughton Bay disaster in 1868.
A subsequent lifeboat was made of iron. This boat served from 1869 to 1871,The Burry Estuary is one of the windiest areas in Britain and the majority of ship wrecks during the 19th Century occurred within its western approaches. The Llanelly Lifeboat was too far eastward to be effective. It was decided to build a new lifeboat house at Pembrey. From November 1863 the Pembrey boat was stationed close to the old Pembrey harbour. Subsequent storms put the boathouse in jeopardy. It was then decided to build a second boathouse in a plantation nearer to the village of Pembrey.
This boathouse was furnished with a new lifeboat named 'Stanton Meyrick of Pimlico. She was 32 feet long and had ten oars plus a coxswain. This boat was in service from 1871 to October 1886. Over this period it was found that windblown sand constantly blocked the main doors and this boathouse was abandoned in October 1886.
A new lifeboat house was built in 1887 and stands to this day on the eastern side of Burry Port Harbour. Between the years 1887 and 1914 three successive lifeboats all named the 'David Barclay of Tottenham' were in service at Burry Port. These lifeboats were launched on a wheeled carriage running on rails across the quay and down a stone slipway into the harbour waters. During this period of 27 years no less than 34 lives were saved from drowning.
The constant need for a lifeboat at Burry Port diminished and on 2nd April 1914 the Station was closed down and the Lifeboat sold locally in the following month. The coastal area was now covered by the Ferryside Lifeboat. On June 30th 1960 the Ferryside station was closed down and the Tenby and Mumbles stations could cover any likely contingencies at that time.
However during the next 13 years boating activity in Carmarthen Bay increased dramatically and instances of drowning reached an alarming level. Something had to be done to protect lives at sea.
A small group of eminent local mariners, including our first President and Lord Lieutenant, Sir David Mansel Lewis, decided to request the RNLI headquarters at Poole to re-establish a new lifeboat at Burry Port. It was also requested that the old existing boathouse be used to accommodate the new boat and all its necessary equipment.
The RNLI acknowledged the dire need to establish a new lifeboat on an urgent basis. The old 1887 Lifeboat House was then re-opened, re-furbished, and from 1973 a new ILB (Inshore Lifeboat) number D220 was put on service.
Mr Herwood Phillips of Harbour View was then appointed the new Station's Honorary Secretary. He was tasked with the establishment of a well-trained and qualified crew and also a working Boathouse Committee.
The following year, an enthusiastic Ladies Guild was established to deal with local fund-raising for the RNLI.
Ladies Guilds, now re-named Lifeboat Fundraising Branches to increase the eligibility of volunteers, are a vital source of income to the RNLI with each Branch having its own working committee. To date the fundraisers at Burry Port have raised well over £100,000.
Since 1973, a keen cavalcade of dedicated young men and women have served and given their total commitment to the Lifeboat Institution.
Many have completed 20 years and more as volunteers and this has been duly acknowledged by many long service awards.
Following a Coastal review in 2009, the need for a second larger, more powerful craft was identified, and on 30th July 2010 a second type of lifeboat, an Atlantic 75 was added to supplement the D Class.
In 2013 it was agreed that a new lifeboat station needed to be built to accommodate both boats as the existing boathouse was no longer fit for purpose and the temporary building housing the Atlantic craft was well passed its lifespan.
Several sets of plans were drawn up to ensure the building met with the brief from the County Council, that the build had to be of an iconic design and able to integrate with the proposed regeneration scheme for the harbour area.
The new Lifeboat Station was opened in Sept 2019 by Charles Hunter-Pease OBE and a new Atlantic 85 ‘Misses Barrie’ was commissioned on the same day.
Since the reopening of the station in September 1973 to date, the Burry Port Lifeboats have launched on more than 1000 service calls (2019), undoubtedly saving many lives and landing or assisting hundreds of casualties.
As a charity the Royal National Lifeboat Institution relies entirely on the support of the general public to train and equip its volunteer crews throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

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D-
(Funded by legacy)

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(Funded by legacy)

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B-

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B-
‘Leicester Challenge II’
Current Service Lifeboats

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B-915 (2019 to date) 'The Misses Barrie' donated by The Misses Barrie Trust
Before the advent of the current range of media, if you needed to show news, feats of courage or just informing people, the main platform for this was newsprint.
Below we have found a selection of newspaper cuttings.
Before the advent of the current range of media, if you needed to show news, feats of courage or just informing people, the main platform for this was newsprint.
Below we have found a selection of newspaper cuttings.