Biscuit Rationalisation

I've just been up the station and noticed that the five half eaten packets of biscuits have been 'rationalised' into the biscuit tin.

Funny enough some of the biscuits - notably a large proportion of the 'first division' biscuits (i.e.  jammy dodgers and custard creams) have gone missing in action at the same time.

Whereas there still appears to be an over abundance of 'Isthmian League Division One South' biscuits (i.e. digestives and rich tea).

I wonder who ate  rationalised the biscuits?

Our websites

For many years now we have run our website, blog and Facebook pages to keep our community and visitors up to date with what we do.

There has always been the official Coastguard site but it would be rare for us to get a mention, so as a group of volunteers we along with other teams around the Country we set up our own websites to promote what we really do in our communities.

Whilst we are Volunteers, we are part of a Government Agency so have to follow the rules and guidelines set down by the senior managers.
As mentioned yesterday there has been a change of thought on the media strategy and the Coastguard Agency want just one site to avoid confusion along with a Government policy change on the use of crests.

Thankfully we have always had a strict code of conduct on our own sites, including not naming casualties, not taking photos of people rescued and towing the party line.

Our blog and Facebook have actually been approved by the MCA but our website has not as its outside the guidelines of having one single site for reference.
We are currently looking at the opinions for the website as it has a lot of historic information which we know are used for research and educational needs.

The blog was set up to cover the building of the station in 2008/9 and it was YOUR request that the site was maintained so you could follow what we did following your support in the town.

Social media is an important tool to promote what we do but we want to ensure we follow the rules so stick with us whilst we make a few changes.

Swanage Coastguard

We're about to change our logo on Facebook and this Blog. 

Apparently our 'New Media Officer' at HQ says we are not allowed to use the colour HMCoastguard crest - above (i.e the HMCoastguard Flag) because all official logos have to now be in black and white - below.

From of the Official Site.

I understand the Government have done this at a national level to reduce the colour printing costs on letters, publications etc. across all UK Government departments. Swanage Coastguard's  continued use of the colour logo on the blog and Facebook is unacceptable as it will confuse you.

If we don't then we have to close our Facebook account and this blog. 

Anyway, instead of the colour HMCoastguard Crest (i.e. the HMCoastguard Flag) we will opt to take a picture of the flag at the station, which just happens to have a colour HMCoastguard Crest on it. 

Oh, and we have also been asked to point out that we are Swanage Coastguard and NOT the Official UK HM Coastguard webpage / blog / facebook page. I know it can be very confusing so to avoid any further trouble we're opting to continue to call our website / blog / facebook page - 'Swanage Coastguard'. 

Please accept our sincere apologies for any confusion. 

If you do want to find out more about HM-Coastguard please go to the Department of Transport webpage and find the Maritime and Coastguard Agency page and then the HMCoastguard page. For ease I've copied the link below:-

http://www.dft.gov.uk/mca/mcga07-home/emergencyresponse/mcga-searchandrescue/mcga-theroleofhmcoasguard.htm

Kimmeridge Whale

Regular readers will know Kimmeridge Coastguard and the Kimmeridge Emergency Volunteers (KERV) had a whale of a time last year.... A Fin Whale.

Kimmeridge Coastguard was particularly generous on Facebook....

They have promised an update this weekend. 

More about why KERV was set up here ......they are on Facebook too!

Sunny Swanage

A little fresh on the sea front this morning, minus one with a wind chill factor of about minus 9.

Leave footprints in the sand......not the mud!

A recent patrol found these worrying footprints.   Despite warnings people are ignoring our advice and risking themselves and others.

 

These are not footpaths but mud slips

 

 

We now have the new warning signs in place thanks to the Town Council, these replace the paper signs that have been up since Christmas.

THE BEACH IS OPEN but please take care around the landslips and stay clear.  We are about to have Spring tides (Higher Tides) and add in an Easterly wind and the risk of being cut off increases.

Enjoy the area but we would prefer you did it without your local Coastguard having to come and dig you out.

Heavy Mud Rescue

With very kind permission of Roger, there was a mud rescue of a difference this week when his 35 tonne digger slipped down a bank and sunk !

Thankfully due to Rogers quick thinking and skill as a machine operator he managed to stop the the machine sinking further.

So whats the link......well Roger wanted to show how dangerous mud can be, whilst his digger is 35 tonnes the principles of a rescue is similar to those faced by us on the beach recently.

It took a bulldozer and an even bigger digger to get the machine pulled out and then just like our mud rescues ....... a lot of cleaning !

New Signs

After several weeks of discussions, new warning signs have arrived in town to be put up warning visitors of the dangers of the landslips.


We will be updating on the slip over the weekend

Ian Brown DIP

The boss was away yesterday so we went mad and opened a packet of biscuits at the Coastguard Station.

It appears he has only gone an got himself a Diploma in Life Long Learning, or 'teaching' as it used to be called. So off he went on a jolly to pick up his certificate.  It's a proper one, not one of those you get on the back of Kellogg's' Cornflake* packets.

(He actually worked damn hard at it - no really he did).

Ian picking up his Diploma - at sunset outside Fawley Oil Refinery.

Well done Ian!

*Other own brand corn flake based cereals are available at local supermarkets, but they don't taste as nice. 

Cliff Rescue, Geology, and Mr Whippy

The other day we were training on the recreation ground, it's a very gentle grassy slope that allows us to see what the cliff technician is doing and to practice cliff rescue in slow time.

To give it 'edge' (excuse the pun) we call it 'The Cliff of Certain Death', but the worst that can happen is someone gets grass stains on their knees, .... or falls through the back wall of the ice cream hut into the Mr Whippy machine.

Brian was the Cliff Tech, and on this occasion he decided to take Chris - our Paramedic over the top.

Brian and Chris dressed in full PPE tackle 'The Cliff Of Certain Death' .

Once the cliff technicians have mastered this its onto the cliffs for real! Swanage has a varied geology and every cliff brings different risk factors, so we're budding geologists also!

Or is it Geomorphologists?

Brian, this time dressed as a lion - he's no stranger at the ice cream hut.