LLANDUDNO RNLI has made an appeal for support this Christmas as charity has been hit by coronavirus.

Nationally the RNLI had to spend £1.2M this year to ensure its volunteer lifeboat crews and beach lifeguards had the vital PPE, such as face masks and gloves, to keep their lifesavers safe. This was money the charity had not planned to spend, at a time when RNLI shops were forced to close and fundraising events were cancelled.

RNLI lifesavers continued to work tirelessly throughout the pandemic to keep people safe as lockdown restrictions eased and people flocked to the coast. Over the summer, there was a 64% increase in the number of recreational water users aided by RNLI lifeboats over the summer. Many of the charity’s lifeguards reported seeing an increase in the number of visitors to beaches around the coast as well.

Captain Marcus Elliott, Llandudno Lifeboat Operations Manager, said: “As we draw to the end of an exceedingly difficult year for all of us, I wish to thank all our fundraisers and supporters for their loyalty.

“Despite all the problems caused by Covid 19, Llandudno RNLI has continued to provide around the clock rescue service and our volunteer crew continue to answer the call to save lives at sea. Regular training exercises were suspended in the early stages of the pandemic, but our crew were able to maintain their skills and now training exercises have resumed, carefully applied social distanced and Covid 19 safe procedures are enabling a return to our training routines. Emergency call outs were unaffected.”

He added: “Fundraising in Llandudno, however, has suffered a significant detrimental impact. Our volunteer run RNLI shop in the town centre has been closed for much of the year, while all our normal activities and visits to the boathouse suspended.

“In common with other charities, we depend entirely on voluntary contributions to continue our life saving work. We are hopeful fundraising activities will restart next year and the lifeboat station on the promenade will once again be open for the public to come and learn about the history and work of Llandudno lifeboat. Next year, we also hope to restart our programme of events and we hope you will be able to come along and support us.”

As a charity, the RNLI relies on the support of the public to continue saving lives – and that support is needed now more than ever. Help us brave a wave we never expected. To make a donation to the RNLI’s Christmas Appeal visit: RNLI.org/Xmas.