Welcome

Welcome to the friends of the St Peter Port lifeboat website.

Please visit https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/st-peter-port-lifeboat-station for the official website

The Guernsey lifeboat station is one of only four in the Channel Islands. Operating for over 200 years, the crews of the Guernsey lifeboats have been honoured with several awards for gallantry.

Spirit of Guernsey at speed – photo by Tony Rive

The Station has seen a variety of lifeboats over the years and the current lifeboat is the Severn class ‘Spirit of Guernsey’. The Island has always been proud to support the Lifeboat Station and crews; in 1973 a special appeal raised a considerable sum towards the cost of the Arun Class “Sir William Arnold”.

Twenty years later an appeal was launched to raise £1 million to support the building of “Spirit of Guernsey”. Thanks to the generosity of friends in Guernsey, Sark, Herm and further afield, the target was achieved within one year. The RNLI relies entirely on voluntary donations.

Following a six-month training and familiarisation period, July 2019 saw the introduction of a ‘B’ Class Atlantic 85 Inshore Rescue lifeboat – the Elizabeth and Margaret Milligan (B-889) on a two-year trial for evaluation.

Picture by Brian Green

Six rescued after vessel runs aground outside Bordeaux Harbour

Posted on by August 23, 2025

At approximately 08:35 BST on Saturday, 23 August 2025, Guernsey Coastguard received a report from a local vessel that another craft was stuck on rocks just outside Bordeaux Harbour.

Upon speaking with the reporting vessel, Coastguard officers determined that the grounded vessel was in need of immediate assistance, with several people still on board. The St Peter Port Lifeboat was paged at 08:40.

Shortly after, the casualty vessel itself issued a Mayday call to Guernsey Coastguard, confirming that six people were on board and required urgent assistance. Coastguard officers maintained communication with the vessel, confirmed there were no injuries, and informed the crew that rescue efforts were underway.

The St Peter Port Inshore Lifeboat launched at 08:53 and arrived on scene at 08:59. All six individuals were safely transferred to the lifeboat and landed at St Sampson’s Harbour by 09:05.

Following the successful evacuation, the lifeboat returned to the casualty vessel, which was at risk of shifting from the rocks due to the falling tide. The Sarnia workboat was also alerted and dispatched to provide assistance.

As the tide receded, a tow line was established at 10:20. The vessel was successfully pulled from the rocks, and personnel were placed aboard to assess any damage. The vessel was then towed into St Sampson Harbour, where it was handed back to its owner.

Duty SAR Mission Coordinator (SMC) Simon Granger said: “ This was a successful outcome with no injuries, I would like to thank the reporting vessel who called the Coastguard in a timely manner and then remained on scene keeping a watch on the casualty until the lifeboat arrived. I would also like to thank the crews of the St Peter Port Lifeboat, and the team onboard the Sarnia workboat for their swift, professional, and coordinated response”.