Storm Arwen: Dramatic video shows RNLI Dunbar battle severe conditions to get to safety

Footage shows the treacherous and severe conditions RNLI volunteers in Dunbar had to battle through to get to safety at the harbour during Storm Arwen.

On Friday, a Met Office rare red weather warning was issued across the east coast of Scotland which predicted high winds and potential loss of life from flying debris.

On the same day, Dunbar RNLI lifeboat volunteers battled severe weather conditions caused by the dangerous storm which took the lives of three people across the UK.

The crew moved the all-weather lifeboat John Neville Taylor from its mooring at Torness Power Station to Dunbar Harbour as a precaution due to the weather warning.

The video shows the view from inside the wheelhouse as Dunbar's lifeboat crew battled through the swell to get to the harbour.

The decision to move the boat was taken to avoid a repeat of the devastation caused by a storm in 2008 to an RNLI lifeboat.

The boat battled waves as high as eight metres as it approached the harbour, according to an RNLI spokesperson.

The video shows the view from inside the wheelhouse as Dunbar's lifeboat crew battled through the swell to get to the harbour (Photo and video credit: RNLI Dunbar Lifeboats / Alistair Punton).

An RNLI spokesperson said: “The decision to move the lifeboat was taken to avoid a repeat of the devastation caused by a 2008 storm, which tore the Trent class lifeboat Sir Ronald Pechell BT’s mooring from the seabed during severe weather on the night of March 21/22, 2008.

"She was severely damaged beyond repair.”

The news comes as a lifeboat crew from Tynemouth battled six-metre waves at the weekend during Storm Arwen and rescued six fishermen on a 100-tonne vessel and Arbroath's all-weather lifeboat, alongside RNLI Montrose, assisted a ship in danger of running aground.

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