Special ceremony held to name Blyth lifeboat

Volunteer crew and Station Management outside of the boat hall at Blyth RNLI.

Blyth RNLI held their lifeboat naming ceremony last Saturday in front of invited guests, family and friends.

Barry Pearson, Blyth RNLI Lifeboat Operation Manager, welcomed the guests where Peter Hunt spoke about the life of Patricia Southall, known by her friends as Pat.

She was a keen supporter of the RNLI and her legacy means that Blyth RNLI were equipped with their new Atlantic 85 B class inshore lifeboat numbered B-923 and named Patricia Southall.

Guest Janet James officially names the Blyth RNLI Atlantic 85 Patricia Southall.

As proceedings continued and the Atlantic 85 was accepted on behalf of the RNLI by RNLI trustee Fiona Fell who thanked the friends of Patricia Southall for making the journey up from the West Midlands.

Barry Pearson said: "It was a privilege and honour for me to welcome everyone to Blyth Lifeboat Station on this special day.

"My thanks go especially to Pat’s friends who made the long journey north to attend today’s ceremony.

"With the RNLI being a charity, legacies such as Patricia Southall’s are vital to us being provided with world class lifeboats and equipment to enable us to continue to save lives at sea.

"We are very grateful for her kind generosity.”

Finally, to conclude the proceedings, the volunteer crew showed the audience Patricia Southall Atlantic 85 B class inshore lifeboat out on the River Blyth and demonstrated its capabilities.

A Blyth RNLI spokesperson said: “Thank you to everyone for their support in making this memorable day such a success.”