St Leonards lifeboat rescue targeted with 'inflammatory, damaging and entirely inaccurate information'
A rescue by a volunteer lifeboat crew was targeted by a group posting 'inflammatory, damaging and entirely inaccurate' information online after being sent to rescue a vulnerable woman from the sea, says an East Sussex charity.
The Pett Level Independent Rescue Boat (PLIRB) said it faced tracking and social media targeting after the UK Coastguard dispatched them to the incident in St Leonards on Tuesday night (September 22).
The charity posted a statement on its Facebook page following the rescue.
It said: “At 9.28pm we were tasked by UK Coastguard to a report of a vulnerable female in the water at St Leonards.
“With calm conditions our crew quickly launched and proceeded to the location. Shortly before arriving on scene, the casualty was retrieved from the water. Being safe and well, all units involved were stood down and our crew returned to base.
“Once ashore, our volunteers had to attend to some maintenance.
“Whilst doing so, we noticed a small group on the sea wall observing our activities. It soon became apparent that this group had tracked our tasking route to Hastings on AIS (Automatic Identification System). They were posting inflammatory, damaging and entirely inaccurate information on social media about the tasking we had just completed.
“The same group had earlier been in Hastings - we believe at or near the RNLI station. It appears to have been part of a full day of disruptive, dangerous and divisive activities.
“We will not comment further on the details but the incident has been reported to UK Coastguard.
“As an emergency lifeboat service our mission is the preservation of life at sea. This is plain and simple and will not change. We do not make judgements or assumptions on casualties. We do not and will not engage in political discussion. However, we will strongly defend our volunteers and our lifeboat's mission.
“We will not tolerate abuse, intimidation or aggressive behaviour towards our volunteers.”
It added: “It is a shame that the individuals who stood in the dark to film and comment did not bother to take the time to talk to us and educate themselves on what it takes to volunteer for an emergency service.”