I often walk beside the Thames, sometimes in the dark and sometimes by day. I love the movement on the river, and along its edges, especially when the bridges and their reflections add extra colour to the palette.

Last week I happened to be beside the Thames after a period of persistent rain. The water reached high up the walkway, slapping against its edges. It was easy to feel the river’s power and its threat, and to understand why the busiest lifeboat station in the country is Tower which opened in 2002, and is moored close to Waterloo Bridge.

Here are a few little facts I’ve picked up about the station. There is more on this RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) website.

• This September Tower was the first lifeboat station to reach 10,000 launches.
• The crews have to launch within 90 seconds of receiving a request from the Coastguard. For coastal stations that time is ten minutes.
• It is manned 24/7 for 365 days of the year.
• Around 50% of its rescues involve accidents or sudden ill-health on board other boats.
• There are three other lifeboat stations on the Thames – Teddington, Chiswick and Gravesend.

I hope that the Thames Barrier will keep major flooding near the bottom of the list of risks facing these crews.

Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2023