Moelfre Lifeboat Crewman Awarded Letter of Appreciation
by Sue
(Marianglas)
Ed Griffiths, a Moelfre RNLI Lifeboat crew member, was recently awarded a letter of appreciation from RNLI Chief Executive Andrew Freemantle, in acknowledgment of a courageous rescue on the night of 24 May 2008.
Ed was appointed emergency 2nd coxswain at Moelfre RNLI Lifeboat at the end of July 2008, and both he and fellow crew member Nigel Musgrave were commended for their significant actions which contributed to saving two lives.
On the night of 24 May 2008 the Moelfre RNLI Lifeboat Robert & Violet launched to assist in the rescue operation of two men who were in the sea off Cemaes Bay.
Coastguard officer, Rob Jones, had bravely jumped into the rough sea to rescue one of the men and assisted him onto an exposed rock.
A search and rescue helicopter airlifted the other man to Ysbyty Gwynedd where he sadly died later.
The Moelfre RNLI Lifeboat under the command of Coxswain Anthony Barclay was skilfully manoeuvred among the submerged rocks in complete darkness, with a rough sea and very strong force seven winds.
A special, small inflatable rescue dinghy carried on board, called the X boat, had already been inflated by the volunteer RNLI lifeboat crew, and it was deployed with Nigel and Ed on board.
They rowed the inflatable through some big waves and successfully recovered from the rock the coastguard officer and the 24 year old, who by this time was exhausted and hypothermic.
They were both transferred to the RNLI Lifeboat where First Aid was rendered by the lifeboat crew on route to Amlwch port, where the casualty was moved to a waiting ambulance and taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd.
Ed said: " Although I'm extremely chuffed to have been presented with the award, I have to acknowledge the tremendous job done by all the Moelfre RNLI Lifeboat crew and the local Coastguard team in such testing conditions on that night.
The successful rescue of the two men wouldn't have taken place without the brilliant team work, experience and intensive training of all the crew and the action of Rob Jones, the Cemaes Bay Coastguard Officer."
In a completely uncanny twist, Ed was recently in holiday in Majorca and was waiting at the airport for his return flight, when a lady asked him if he was anything to do with the lifeboats and it turned out that she was the girlfriend of the man he had rescued from the sea!
"It was an emotional moment and really brought home to me the reality of what we had achieved", said Ed.
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