In the first episode, a retired nursery teacher gets herself into danger when attempting to rescue her two dogs after they became cut off by the rising tide. In Wales, one volunteer crew member is washed off a cliff into the sea trying to rescue a concussed spearfisherman, and, in Blackpool, a rescue in a force seven gale goes badly wrong, putting all three crew members' lives in jeopardy. When torrential floods hit Cumbria shortly before Christmas the volunteers are again on hand to try and rescue families trapped by the rising waters.
The volunteers of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution staff more than 230 stations covering even the most far-flung areas of Britain's coastline, but the busiest station by far is actually miles from the sea, on the River Thames in central London. It was established after the Marchioness pleasure cruiser sank in 1989, claiming the lives of more than 50 people. While it might look benign, the Thames is actually one of the most dangerous stretches of water in the UK. The volunteers are called from their beds in the middle of the night to try to rescue two students who have jumped naked into the river while high on LSD. At the coast in Newquay, the volunteers and coastguard helicopter are scrambled to try and help a 12-year-old boy on a Cub Scout trip who has fallen badly and has suspected spinal damage. Eastbourne lifeboat station covers a stretch of coastline which includes Beachy Head, so they have had to become more familiar with death than most. Recovering the body of someone who has taken their own life is a duty the volunteers see as an important service to the family who have lost a loved one.
In Cornwall, newest recruit, 18-year-old Shaunna, is following in her grandfather's footsteps. After a successful first rescue of a teenage holidaymaker, she has hopes to one day become Newquay's first helmswoman. In the remote fishing village of Oban on the west coast of Scotland, the RNLI have another new 18-year-old recruit. Young Andrew and the rest of the crew are given a painful reminder of the dangers all lifeboat volunteers face when they are woken by their pagers in the middle of the night to try and rescue the captain and crew of a fishing boat that is sinking having run aground in the middle of a storm. Volunteering with the RNLI inevitably means encountering and risking death, and it is a sacrifice that takes its toll on the crew-members and their families. But, coming as it does with the opportunity for ordinary men and women to save human life, it also has its own very unique rewards.
In the summer months, millions of Britains flock to the UK's 11,000 miles of coastline. As more and more of us have lost our connection with, and understanding of, the seas that surround us, it's all too easy to be caught out by the water - making it the busiest time of year by far for the RNLI. The army of unpaid volunteers has to contend with everything from overly ambitious novice sailors caught in a storm, to a little girl who has become trapped in the rocks below the high-water mark. The dangers of the water are further put into perspective when a father gets himself into serious difficulties after swimming out to try and rescue his young son, whilst a YouTube prankster deliberately flings himself from Tower Bridge for 'a dare'.
In the first episode, a father and daughter find themselves treading water for almost an hour, hundreds of metres out at sea, after being swept out by a rip current. In Kinsale, Ireland, three fishermen swim for their lives as their trawler is smashed on to rocks. And in London, an unlucky tourist is minutes from hypothermia after his attempt to take a selfie lands him in the Thames.
Off the coast of Bridlington, a kayaker has been missing for an hour, and only the crews' expert coastal knowledge can help track him down. A crew member on his first shout races to a dinghy capsize to find a man losing consciousness in the water. And when a fishing trawler sinks off the coast of the Shetland Islands, the fishermen and RNLI crew aboard must swim for their lives.
In Ireland, the Castletownbere crew race to rescue a lone yachtsman who has lost his mast and is drifting powerless in 10-metre waves, 45 miles out to sea. In Minehead a woman on a clifftop walk has gone missing, and after 17 hours the crew are called to search the shoreline. And for an injured horse rider on a remote beach, the Porthcawl crew are the only way to emergency medical help.
In Bangor, Northern Ireland, crews are tasked to find two teenage paddle boarders, blown offshore towards nearby shipping lanes. The Tenby crew in West Wales must race to a dog who's fallen over a cliff - before worried members of the public attempt to rescue it themselves. And on the North Norfolk coast, the harrowing hovercraft rescue of three young sisters still brings back painful memories for the Hunstanton crew.
Every day around the UK, an army of unpaid volunteers put their lives on the line to try and save complete strangers. Saving Lives at Sea tells the story of the ordinary men and women of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) who, across the country, are ready to launch their boats and race to the rescue within minutes of a cry for help - 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, whatever the weather. Using footage shot on crews' own cameras, this series takes us right into the heart of the action, capturing the unpredictable work of the RNLI in never-before-seen detail. In south west Wales, the Tenby crew race to a kayaker with suspected back and neck injuries after being caught out by a freak wave. Neighbouring Cornish crews must join forces in an epic 11-hour battle to stop a 3,600-tonne coaster breaking up on the rocks. And the Dart and Salcombe crews are astonished to be paged to the biggest shout of their lives.
In episode six of this 12-part series, on one of the hottest days of the year, the Dover crew race to a Channel Swimmer who's collapsed within sight of the French coast. In Mudeford, there are growing fears for a dinghy sailor who is four miles out in rough seas and refusing to accept help, and the Tenby crew are called to a runaway yacht just metres from running aground.
When a climber falls in a remote cave on the Gower Peninsula, the Mumbles crew are called in to search and rescue. In Portreath, lifeguards battle to save a teenager who is determined to surf despite red flag warnings. And on the Isle of Wight, the Yarmouth crew must locate a man in the water amongst over a thousand boats competing in the Round the Island Race.
In Ilfracombe, a father and son find themselves in danger after jumping in to rescue a drowning dog. The Minehead crew must scour the cliffs and shoreline after a young woman goes missing in a distressed state. And when they're paged to a man seen entering the Thames, the Tower crew face the possibility they may not find him in time.
The Aberystwyth crew must improvise when a local paraglider crash-lands at the bottom of steep cliffs. When an adventurous seal is discovered on the steps of a block of flats, Redcar's newest recruit is first on the scene. And in Minehead, a challenging rescue forces an inexperienced crew member to consider her future.
As the summer sun comes out, so do the fun seekers, and crews around the country get ready for action. In Southend, a family of five out sightseeing are a mile off shore and waist-deep in water after being caught out by the tide. The Shoreham crew are paged in the early hours after a drunken festival-goer jumps in the river. And the Brighton crew fear the worst when a man tombstones off the pier at low tide.
When an early morning dog walker spots a flare off shore, the Rhyl crew race to one of the most mysterious shouts they have seen. The Lowestoft crew find themselves paged to help to a sailor who doesn't want to be rescued. And at Tower, a good samaritan is clinging on for his life after trying to rescue a dog which has jumped into the Thames.
In Tenby, police searching for a boat thief call for lifeboat assistance. The Mumbles lifeguards and lifeboat crew race to help two kayakers adrift in a boat laden with beer. And when two yachts capsize off Portsmouth, the crew must make fast decisions about who to rescue first.
Out at sea, minutes and even seconds can make the difference between life and death. On the south coast of Devon, the crew of Salcombe lifeboat station are called to two of the highest level of emergencies at sea - a mayday call to a fisherman pulled to the bottom of the sea ensnared in his own fishing gear and a devastating fire on a boat 15 miles out in the Channel. Over 200 miles away in the waters off Anglesey, as they go to the rescue of a father and his 13-year-old son missing at sea, the crew of Moelfre station uncover a story of survival and heroism.
From first timers at sea to salty old skippers, the wrong conditions can catch anyone off their guard leaving them in need of rescuing. On the east coast of Ireland, the crew of Courtown's inshore lifeboat face one of their most challenging shouts ever - in deep water they must keep a teenage girl with suspected spinal injuries immobile and afloat for 40 minutes, knowing any movement could leave her paralysed for life. Meanwhile on the English Riviera in Devon, the Torbay crew have just minutes to find a capsized kayaker before she is dashed against the rocks, and in Dartmouth, an 81-year-old sailor, fallen overboard in the middle of the night, is left clinging to a rope for his life.
Keeping watch over the River Thames, the crew at Tower in central London, the busiest of the RNLI's 238 stations, are called to a man reported in the water eight miles downstream. On arrival, they discover a river bus already on the scene and their crew desperately trying to hang on to the unmoving man before he disappears under the water. At one of the most remote stations, Trearddur Bay on Anglesey, the crew are called to an inaccessible coastal fishing spot, where an angler has plunged face first down a cliff onto rocks. With no helicopter available, the crew and their small inshore lifeboat are the only option to get him to urgent medical treatment. While in Portsmouth, gale force winds and a churning sea make a routine rescue particularly challenging.
In Brighton the crew are called out to what they think is just a routine job - towing a yacht that has lost power back to harbour - but a sudden spring squall and mountainous waves leave the crew fighting to save the yacht and themselves from being dashed on the shore. Off the east coast of Ireland, the crew of the small fishing village of Howth respond to an emergency call from a family on a local beach - a teenage girl out on a sailing dinghy has capsized and is now being swept out into the Irish Sea. While on the island of Anglesey, the crew of Moelfre are also heading out to help a family in trouble - two women have swum out to save a friend's young son being blown out to sea on an inflatable, but it quickly becomes the rescuers that need saving themselves
In Torbay in Devon the seas are often crowded with sailing craft of all shapes and sizes – when two collide the Torbay lifeboat crew are called out to provide emergency medical assistance for a potentially life-changing injury. On the south coast of Wales, the Porthcawl crew have just seconds to spare when two teenagers on holiday get caught on a rocky outcrop by a large swell and a rising spring tide. While in Yorkshire, the Flamborough crew have to pluck a man from danger after he jumps off a hundred-foot cliff for a dare.
There are many reasons why the thousands of yellow-wellied volunteers first joined up, but they all share a common desire to help those in trouble. At Anstruther station in Scotland, one of their newest helms, George, takes charge for his first shout to a serious medical evacuation. A woman has slipped on one of the most notorious parts of the station's patch, the Chain Walk, where walkers have to negotiate steep cliffs while hanging on to chains hammered into the rock. On the north coast of Devon, the crew at Appledore station make a life-or-death dash to rescue two teenagers caught in a cave being flooded by the tide and pounded by waves, but arriving at the scene they discover that saving the young couple will mean putting themselves in danger. And when Storm Henry hits the British Isles and has shipping running for safe harbours, a cargo ship loses all power and is left at the mercy of the waves and 90-mile-an-hour winds. As she drifts inexorably towards the rugged cliffs of north Devon, two lifeboats are launched but even with their combined power they face a losing battle trying to tow the huge ship out of harm's way
On the north coast of Kent, new crew member Ruth is on board for one of her first ever shouts. Off the Essex coast, the crew of West Mersea station launch to reports of a life raft in the North Sea. 10 miles along the coast at Clacton the crew get a call in the middle of the night to look for two people in the sea.
For the thousands of volunteers who guard our seas and waterways, saving other people can mean making sacrifices in their own lives. Volunteer and doctor Adam makes a 500-mile round trip every time he puts in a shift at Tower Lifeboat Station in the heart of London, but his medical skills prove invaluable when the crew are called to help the police try and save a man who is stuck under a pier on the Thames with the tide rising. In north Wales, when police officer Vinny isn't patrolling the streets of Rhyl, he volunteers for the lifeboat crew. When the pagers go off one summer evening, Vinny finds himself heading out into the darkness to try and rescue two teenage boys who have chased a wayward football into the sea and get caught in a treacherous current. While across the Irish Sea in Dunmore East, the lifeboat crew's evening is interrupted by an urgent call to a motor boat stranded several miles out and taking on water.
As storm Ophelia hits the British Isles, on the south east coast of Ireland the pagers of the Rosslare crew go off - a small yacht with three people on board is caught in one of the worst storms in living memory. In Devon, the crew at Appledore race an incoming tide to try and reach a man stuck fast in quicksand, while on the north coast of Cornwall the crew of St Agnes must battle through huge breaking waves to reach two young boys being swept out to sea in a deadly rip current.
Off the packed beach at Blackpool, the crew race after a teenage girl being swept out to sea on an inflatable dinghy. While on the miles of long sandy beaches at Rhyl in north Wales, amongst the holidaying crowds two girls get caught in a deadly current while swimming just a few metres from shore. And on the Cornish coast a woman, trying out the extreme sport of coasteering for the very first time, falls several metres down a cliff face onto a beach with a fast incoming tide.
The volunteers of the RNLI race to the scene of a plane crash on a busy beach, search for a man missing at sea in the Channel Islands and battle to save a horse from drowning.
The volunteers of the RNLI race to save a fisherman from a burning boat, a man stuck in freezing mud, and a walker, who after trying to rescue her dog, now needs saving herself.
Every day in the seas around the UK and Ireland, an army of unpaid volunteers put their lives on the line to save those of others. Saving Lives At Sea tells the story of the ordinary men and women of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) who are ready to answer their pager’s call and race to the rescue of those in trouble, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, whatever the weather. Using footage shot on the crews’ own cameras, this series takes us into the heart of the action, capturing the unpredictable work of the RNLI in unique detail. Out at sea the lifeboat crews know that minutes and even seconds can mean the difference between life and death. On the rugged east coast of Scotland, three kids have been cut off in a sea cave by a rising tide - the crew at Dunbar must race to get to them before the rising water does. Meanwhile on the opposite coast of Scotland, the crew at Tobermory face their own life and death race – a yacht and her four crew members caught in a violent storm are being pushed ever closer to a rocky shore and disaster. On the north east coast of England the crew at Blyth are called out to search for a missing 80-year-old man who hasn’t been seen for over six hours after leaving home to search for lobsters on the coast. The crew have no idea if he is in the sea or on shore, but what they do know is that with every passing minute the chance of finding him alive are dwindling.
Although the lifeboat crews are on call all year round, it’s in the summer months when they’re at their busiest. As holidaymakers flock to the coast, the lifeboat crews and lifeguard teams are on high alert. When the sun is out, the sea cliffs in Dorset are a draw for climbers from all over the country, but when one falls over 40 feet onto an inaccessible rocky ledge the lifeboat crew have to work out how to get her to safety. In Cornwall, another extreme sports enthusiast needs saving when a paraglider misjudges his launch and ends up crashing into the sea. And the Redcar lifeboat crew search for a man who has drifted over a mile offshore in a small toy dinghy.
In Newquay the lifeboat crew are called one of the many ship wrecks lying on the sea bed off the Cornish coast, where a diver has been found unconscious without his mouthpiece over 30 metres under the waves. In one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world, the Dover Strait, a yacht taking on water calls for help. The crew of the Dover lifeboat race to reach them before they sink or are hit by one of the large cargo ships racing through the Channel. Meanwhile in Mudeford on the Dorset coast the crew and their lifeboat are pushed to their limits as they launch into storm conditions to search for a windsurfer in trouble.
A volunteer in Scotland has to rescue his own father, whose fishing boat is drifting powerless towards a rocky shoreline. In Bristol, a father and son are among the crew that comes to the aid of two five-year-old girls who have drifted into the Bristol channel on an inflatable, while in Ilfracombe, lifeboat volunteers race against time to save a mother and her daughter stranded at the base of huge sea cliffs.
The RNLI volunteers at Lough Ree Lifeboat Station race to the rescue of the last inhabitant of a remote island. On the north-east coast of England, the Blyth crew races to find a kayaker in trouble in the North Sea, while at Tower station in Central London, a dog is trapped by the tide on the River Thames.
The RNLI volunteers race to the rescue of a huge cargo ship aground on a sandbank, a kayaker who has set off an emergency beacon, and a horse in danger of drowning in a river.
In Crosshaven, on the south coast of Ireland, one of the younger crew members, 23-year-old Jenna, gets FOMO when she is called out at the weekend while her friends are going out. But when the pagers go off on one Saturday night in early September, there are no thoughts of missing out when the details of the call come through – a shark attack. On the south coast of England in Lyme Regis, another early evening weekend call means social lives are put on hold as the crew leave friends, families and other halves to try to save two boys being swept far out to sea in a treacherous rip current. Meanwhile, at Portishead on the Bristol Channel, music teacher and trainee crew member Lu finds herself on one of her first shouts going out to one of the most urgent calls they can get – casualties in the water.
When the lives of the volunteers are interrupted by the sound of their pagers, the crews have no idea what they may be facing. All they know is to expect the unexpected. In Cleethorpes on the Humber estuary, the pagers go off on a calm summer’s day. Arriving at the station, the crew discover two lives are in imminent danger - two teenagers are stuck fast in mud with the incoming tide threatening to overwhelm them. On Loch Ness in Scotland, at one of the RNLI’s few inland stations, a routine call to pick up a boat that has broken its moorings becomes a race to save a family of four as a more urgent call comes in. The mast has snapped on their yacht, threatening to capsize the boat and throw the family into the freezing waters of the loch.
For many lifeboat crews, volunteering runs in the family, stretching back generations, while for others working so closely together means crewmates can often become like a second family. At Swanage lifeboat station, two brothers Matt and Gavin, following in t ir father’s footsteps, race to rescue a pair of novice paddleboarders before they are swept out into the busy shipping lanes. On the north east coast, the tight-knit crew at Withernsea scour the North Sea searching for a local fisherman, and friend of the crew, who is missing at sea. Meanwhile on the opposite side of the country in Blackpool, a volunteer’s wedding day is interrupted by an urgent call for help.
When the pagers sound, the only thing the volunteers know for sure is to expect the unexpected. The unpredictable seas around Britain’s coast mean they can be called out to everything and anything. On the Wirral coast, the crew of Hoylake’s rescue hovercraft are called out to an unconventional casualty – a porpoise stranded by the outgoing tide. Meanwhile, 200 miles to the north, there is another unusual victim of the British tides - a teenage wedding guest in suit and tie is plucked off a fast-disappearing rocky outcrop in the middle of the sea by the Kinghorn crew. And in Cornwall, the Penlee lifeboat crew receive a dreaded call – a fishing boat, skippered by a fisherman the crew all know, is in flames miles out at sea.
The lifeboat crews are on call all year round, but it is in the summer months when they are at their busiest. While the crowds that flock to the coast relax and soak up the sun, the lifeboat crews and lifeguard teams are on high alert. In the Irish resort of Skerries, the pagers bring the crew running to the station when strong winds sweep a teenager on a paddleboard out to sea and towards the busy shipping lanes of the Irish Sea.
The volunteers of the RNLI race to save a sinking schooner and a walker with a broken leg, while cries for help in the early hours of the morning lead to an eerie night-time search.
The volunteers of the RNLI race to save a stricken fishing boat in a force-eight gale, a yacht trapped on a weir in Loch Ness and a puppy that has swallowed a fishing hook.
The thousands of lifeboat volunteers across the UK and Ireland are willing to put their lives on the line to rescue those in danger at a moment’s notice. Once they have launched, they have to place their trust in their training, their equipment and, most importantly of all, their fellow crew members. They also know that they will have to ask strangers who may be in pain, fear and mortal danger to put their trust in them. In the fast-flowing and treacherous currents of the Bristol Channel, the crew of a Weston-super-Mare lifeboat face one of their most critical shouts ever, as a routine call-out turns into a race to save three casualties who have been caught by a rising tide, are exhausted from trying to swim against the current and are now in grave danger. On the north east coast of England, an angry sea has trapped a father and son against a cliff face with no way out. The Redcar crew race to reach them before the last strip of dry of land disappears under the waves. Meanwhile, in Swanage on the south coast, both of the station’s lifeboats launch when two mayday calls come in back to back, one to a grounded yacht and the other to a skipper who has suffered a severe injury after catching a hand in his yacht’s winch.
The RNLI volunteers search for a missing kitesurfer, race to rescue a father and daughter being swept out to sea and try to save all nine lives of a casualty in the Thames.
The RNLI volunteers race to save a teenage paddleboarder being swept out to sea, a sinking cargo ship and a yacht being battered by an Atlantic storm.
The volunteers of the RNLI race to save a surfer at the mercy of Storm Brendan and a paddleboarder who’s being swept out to sea - and away from his young children.
The volunteers of the RNLI battle to save a mother and her son who are caught in a rip current, plus a man who has fallen over 100 feet from the top of a cliff.
The lifeboat volunteers pluck a fallen climber out of the sea in Wales, and in Scotland they rescue a 170-ton fishing boat that’s perilously close to the rocks in gale force winds.
In London, the RNLI rush to the rescue of a man in the water in the Thames, while in Fleetwood a desperate 999 call alerts the crew to a man in danger of being swept out to sea.
In Trearddur Bay, the RNLI crew battle through force-ten winds and huge waves to try to rescue a surfer - watched by their worried families back on shore.
In St Agnes, the crew are involved in a race against time to rescue two young men. They are reported to be struggling in the water near a notorious headland known as Tubby’s Head.
Whenever the crew’s pager sounds, they know they must prepare for all eventualities. At Beachy Head, the Eastbourne crew have to deal with a base jumper’s disastrous takeoff. Just along the Sussex coast in Newhaven, a man faces a race against time as he suffers a seizure on board a tall ship. At Loch Ness, a World War II sea plane runs into mechanical trouble. And in Rhyl, a dog chasing seagulls into the sea bites off more than she can chew.
On Ireland's south-east coast, the three RNLI crews at Dunmore East, Kilmore Quay and Rosslare battle to save a cargo ship that has lost all power and is drifting towards rocks.
Just off the west coast of Scotland, on the rugged Isle of Mull, the Tobermory lifeboat crew have to battle huge waves to save a 40-foot fishing boat that has lost all power.
In Portrush, Northern Ireland, the crew race to rescue a boy who’s got into difficulties whilst jumping off rocks - and one of the crew volunteers enters the water to save him.
In Newhaven, the RNLI volunteers race to the rescue of two paragliders who have landed on an isolated stretch of beach and are now being swamped by the rapidly rising tide.
In total, the RNLI is made up of over 35,000 individual volunteers, all working together on land and sea to save lives. In Swanage, the lifeboat crew work hand in hand with the specialist coastguard rope team to help an injured climber. In Rhyl, north Wales, a retired crew member comes to the aid of a person in the water when mechanical problems throw a spanner in the works of the lifeboat. On Douglas, in the Isle of Man, a fire on a fishing boat puts the crew on red alert. And in Gravesend, a routine training exercise is diverted by an unusual casualty: a poorly swan.
In Lyme Regis, on Dorset’s Jurassic coast, the crew face a frantic search for three fishermen whose boat has capsized in the River Axe. On the north Cornish coast, the lifeguards at Harlyn race to the rescue of a teenager caught out by a notorious rip current. On the west coast of Scotland, the Oban crew dash across the water to the remote island of Kerrera to help an injured walker, and across the Irish Sea, the Kinsale crew have to act quickly to help a skipper who, while trying to single-handedly sail his yacht across the Atlantic, is drifting without power towards rocks.
On Ireland’s north west coast, the RNLI crew at Bundoran race to the rescue of a teenage girl who has been swept out to sea.
On the coast of south Wales, Penarth crew member Tom is called up for his first ever shout when a female paddleboarder is caught out by the tide.
In Eastbourne, on the Sussex coast, a routine day at the lifeboat station changes in an instant when a boat catches fire just outside the harbour.
In Swanage, Dorset, the crew race to the rescue of a diver whose life hangs in the balance and help a yachtsman whose hand has been badly damaged by an anchor chain. In Kinghorn, on the east coast of Scotland, a swimmer is swept out to sea and is at severe risk of hypothermia. On Holywell beach in Newquay, a multi-agency operation kicks into gear when a walker suffers a serious injury.
In Thurso, Scotland’s most northerly mainland station, the crew race to the rescue of an ocean-going rower who’s run into trouble 40 miles out to sea. In Dungeness, on the Kent coast, there are two very different shouts for the crew to deal with: an 11-year-old boy who has drifted out to sea on an inflatable dinghy and three people who are attempting to cross the English Channel at night. And in Newhaven, Sussex, a dog has fallen over 100 feet from the cliffs at Seaford.
In Kinghorn, on Scotland’s east coast, a simple call out for the RNLI crew to a paddleboarder in difficulty isn’t all that it seems.
In Baltimore, south west Ireland, the crew are called out to reports of a solo sailor clinging onto his upturned catamaran over 70 miles out to sea.
In Calshot, the RNLI crew are called out to a young man who has lost consciousness in a jet ski accident; when his heart stops, it’s a race against time to bring him back to life.
In Whitby, North Yorkshire, the RNLI crew race to the rescue of two fossil hunters who are cut off by the tide - and soon find that they too are in grave danger.
When reports come in of a kayaker who has failed to make it back to shore - where his wife is watching on helplessly - the Larne crew race to the rescue.
In north Wales, the Conwy crew respond to reports of two people - including a young boy - who have been caught out by the tide and are now struggling to stay afloat.
In Plymouth, the RNLI crew race to the rescue of a fisherman who’s fallen off his boat and is now adrift in the water, with a sea temperature of just eight degrees.
In Torbay, Devon, a yacht has sent out a mayday, meaning the lives of the six crew on board are in grave and imminent danger.
In Blackpool, the crew respond to reports of a teenager who has been swept out to sea within sight of the main beach.
On the north eastern tip of Scotland, the crew at Wick begin a frantic search to find a paddleboarder who has drifted a mile out to sea while her family wait on the shore.
The North Berwick crew race out to try and save a windsurfer battling the seas as he and they fight the gale-force winds of Storm Dennis on the east coast of Scotland.
On the Isle of Wight, the Bembridge crew face a race against time to save an old fishing trawler that’s become trapped on a submarine barrier and is now taking on water.
Dermot O’Leary uncovers the story of the RNLI’s heroic efforts in the Second World War as its crews were called to serve in the most perilous of conditions, saving 6,376 lives.
In Dungeness, the crew are called out to reports of a small boat in the middle of the shipping lanes, and they discover that the casualty is the subject of a major manhunt.
In Porthcawl, a fisherman has been dragged lifeless out of the sea by bystanders. The lifeboat crew race to the beach and join the desperate attempts to resuscitate him.
In Castletownbere, crew member Donagh faces a baptism of fire on his first shout as the crew carry out a dramatic rescue of a fisherman who has suffered a suspected stroke.
In Queensferry, on the east coast of Scotland, an American visitor is caught out by the tide and is barely conscious when the RNLI crew drag him out of the water.
In Humber, the crew must work closely together to pull off the dangerous medivac of a fisherman with a spinal injury.
In Walmer, the crew respond to reports of a major incident involving a small boat in the Channel. On arrival, they are faced with mass casualties in the freezing water.
In Mudeford, on the Dorset coast, a search for a missing kayaker quickly escalates when it emerges that there are six more kayaks unaccounted for.
On the north Somerset coast, the Minehead crew come close to disaster in a challenging rescue of two walkers cut off by the tide.
In Porthcawl, on the south-west coast of Wales, the crew receive a call about a swimmer who’s been swept out to sea in a rip current - as his wife and son watch on helplessly.
