Fowey RNLI to Say Farewell to Lifeboat After 30 Years of Service

Public invited to say goodbye to 30 years of RNLI history on 1st August

Fowey is preparing for a moving farewell as the town gets ready to wave off its all-weather Trent class lifeboat, Maurice and Joyce Hardy 14-18, which has served the area for nearly 30 years.

The lifeboat will depart Fowey Harbour on Friday 1st August in a striking flotilla procession, marking her final journey from the lifeboat station.

Final farewell flotilla

Led by the Trent class lifeboat with Coxswain Jonathan Pritchard at the helm, the flotilla will include lifeboats, harbour boats, trip boats, ex-lifeboats, safety vessels, gigs and private crafts.

Fowey Harbour Commissioners are coordinating the event, encouraging mariners to dress their vessels with bunting, flags or RNLI colours where safe to do so. Harbour Patrol vessels will manage the procession along a charted route as Maurice and Joyce Hardy makes her last sail past the town.

Spectators will be able to view the farewell from several popular vantage points, including:

• Berrill’s Yard

• Albert Quay

• Gallants Sailing Club

• Fowey Town Quay

• Royal Fowey Yacht Club

• Esplanade

• Readymoney Beach

• St Catherine’s Castle

• Alldays Fields

A chance to step aboard

Before she departs, the lifeboat will be open for free public tours at the lifeboat pontoon on Friday 1st August from 11am to 1pm. This will be the final opportunity to look around the vessel before she leaves Fowey.

A short ceremony will follow at 2.15pm, with a farewell speech by Jonathan Pritchard broadcast to the crowd. Shortly afterwards, at 2.30pm, the lifeboat will lead the flotilla out of Fowey Harbour, flanked by the inshore D class lifeboat and the relief Atlantic 85 lifeboat.

Vessels wishing to take part in the flotilla are asked to muster at Berrill’s Yard just before 2.30pm. As the procession departs, it will make short detours to Fowey Town Quay and Polruan to allow onlookers a final glimpse of the much-loved vessel.

At the harbour entrance, the flotilla will form a ‘guard of honour’ and crowds are encouraged to cheer, wave and sound their horns to give Maurice and Joyce Hardy the send-off she deserves, while honouring all who served aboard her.

A proud history of saving lives

Since arriving in Fowey on 25th September 1996, Maurice and Joyce Hardy has been launched 314 times, helped 462 people, spent 591 hours at sea, and saved 22 lives.

The lifeboat is also open for free guided tours daily from 21st to 26th July, ahead of the departure.

Full event details are available on Facebook here: facebook.com/events/9830373183740155

📷Final farewell flotilla route for Fowey's Trent lifeboat - Credit: Fowey Harbour Commisioners