RNLI releases dramatic photos of Platt’s Eyot fire
Teddington RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution) were called to assist the various fire service units in the dramatic fire at Platt’s Eyot on the River Thames on Monday the 3rd of May 2021.
The RNLI have since released dramatic images of their rescue mission.
Jon Chapman explained: ‘Together with my crew of Toby Banks (who is also a helm) and Gianna Saccomani, we arrived on scene to see the dramatic fire in front of us. This was an unusual tasking for us, due to the location and the nature of the incident.
‘Platt’s Eyot is outside our normal area of operations (which ends at Molesey Lock) but, following a direct request from the police and discussion between London Coastguard and our launching authority, we went ahead. On arrival, we liaised at once with the Fire Service Commander and were tasked both with ensuring boat owners trying to get to their boats were not at risk and with checking that there were no people aboard the numerous larger boats in the area of the fire (many of these could not be safely accessed from the island).
‘It was awful to see from the river the devastation caused to this historic site, but, as ever, the emergency service response was superb. In particular, the work of the Fire Service in adverse weather conditions and despite very difficult access to the area of the fire was admirable!’
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a charity that saves lives at sea. RNLI volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service in the United Kingdom and Ireland from 238 lifeboat stations, including four along the River Thames.
The Mayor has praised emergency services for their response to the fire.
Images courtesy of the RNLI
