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THE BARRA COASTGUARD TEAM |
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Barra Coastguard STRUCTURE/ROLE ORGANIZATION Barra Coastguard Team is one of 15 teams in the Western Isles in the Western Isles managed by the Marine Rescue Sub Centre (MRSC) in Stornoway. This Centre is also responsible for a further 10 auxiliary teams on the NW coast of the Mainland - extending as far North as Cape Wrath. The Barra team has a full
complement of 11 volunteers whose regular occupations are both
diverse and complementary and include fireman, joiner, mason,
engineer, doctor and dentist! ROLE One of the prime roles of the team is to ensure a safe environment on and around the coast for all users ranging from fisherman to leisure. This often includes involvement with Search and Rescue. The team is able to provide detailed local knowledge of the coast and the prevailing weather conditions to the coordinating Centre in Stornoway as well as to seafarers and members of the public. |
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The team is provided with VHF radio on the marine band to assist communications and a 4 wheel drive vehicle to get to inaccessible areas of the coast. Cliff rescue equipment is also provided in the event of being required on the coast or inland as part of a mountain rescue team role. The team is regularly trained in the use of this specialized equipment. The team will sometimes man day and night helicopter landing sites around the island for medical evacuation purposes if weather or tide conditions prevent fixed wing aircraft landing on the beach landing strip at Traigh Mhor. Sometime the team will be called to man the local radio station at Grean Head if landlines are non-functioning due to electrical storms etc. Other team roles include public relations such as visiting schools and youth clubs to provide education about the maintenance of a safe coastal environment and possible areas of hazard. Occasionally the team will be asked to follow up pollution reports and explosive ordnance reports. EMERGENCY In the event of emergency incidents such as missing/overdue vessels/persons, sightings of red flares and the possible injury or trapping of persons on the coast all primary contact must be made with Stornoway MRSC either by telephone 01851702013/4 or via VHF channel 16 (156.800MHz) as Barra coastguard is not permanently manned *. The Barra team can be contacted by Stornaway by radio pager and can be on the scene of an incident within one hour. After an incident report members of the team may visit the first informant to obtain more detailed information so as to direct any subsequent search operation more accurately. · Alternatively members of the public can dial 999 or 112 and ask for " Coastguard". This service should be used in a genuine emergency but must not be abused. SEARCH AND RESCUE (SAR) In the event of overdue/missing vessels and persons Stornoway MRSC coordinates a search plan. This may include the coastguard helicopter (Rescue Mike Uniform - Stac Polly) which is based in Stornoway but can be in Barra in approximately one hour depending on the weather and other local conditions. The RNLI lifeboat Edna Windsor a Severn class vessel (www.jgruson.demon.co.uk) is anchored in Castlebay harbour and is often used in searches up to a radius of at least 50miles. The nearest other lifeboats are situated at Tobermory, Mallaig and Portree. Other vessels, which can become involved in a search, may be local fishing vessels, pleasure craft, Caledonian Macbrayne ferries and any passing Royal Navy vessels. The role of Barra Coastguard is to provide local information at the time and to search all relevant local coastlines. Subsequently, a cliff or shore rescue may be necessary. The team is provided with high intensity torches, illuminating flares and a mobile generator so that the scene of an incident on the coast can be illuminated adequately. Many of the team are first aid trained so that the casualty can be stabilized before transfer to hospital via helicopter or lifeboat. |