How it all began

Nith Inshore Rescue began in the winter of 1981/82. A man was trapped alone on a sandbank in the River Nith just to the south of Glencaple. The tide was rising fast around him and local people could only watch in horror as a tragedy unfolded before their eyes. They looked on helplessly as the man shouted for help, but inevitably the rising water overcame him and the Nith claimed yet another life.

Four others had drowned not long before in similar circumstances. Indeed, over the years many people had lost their lives after becoming cut off by the fast-flowing Solway tides. The area was a long way from the nearest lifeboat and vital minutes were being lost as help was summoned from Silloth, across the Solway in Cumbria.

That year, local people toom matters into their own hands and decided the Glencaple area needed its own rescue boat, to be based in the village. And so Nith Inshore Rescue was born. A massive fundraising effort swung into action, with private individuals and local businesses donating generously.

The photo above (picture: Annandale Observer) shows our first boat, a 12.5 foot Zodiac inflatable fitted with a 35 hp ouotboard engine and a VHF radio. From left to right: Jim Cowan, Wally Wright, Stewart Wilson, Alastair McKinnon, Doug Findon, Kevin McCall, Billy Wright and Ronnie Clark.

Our grateful thanks to those individuals and businesses, in the Caerlaverock area and beyond, who have supported us - and continue to support us - so generously.

The first boat served us well until 1989 when, due to its age and the increased area we were being required to cover, we managed to raise enough money to buy our second boat, a 5.1 metre rigid inflatable fitted with a 60 hp outboard (pictured left with crew John Dalrymple, Richard Thomson, Stewart Wilson, Alan Steel, Mike Clark and Wally Wright). This second boat coped well with the increase in operational area until the same situation arose again. After another massive fund-raising effort we launched our third boat in 1997.

Boat 3 gave us many years of good service. However, a new Code of Practice was introduced by the Coastguard in 2009, the principal stipulation being that all lifeboats now had to be self-righting. Our boat did not meet the new requirements so we had to fund-raise yet again, resulting in the launch of our present boat in February 2010.