Totland Bay Lifeboat Station
Totland Bay Lifeboat Station stood at the foot of Widdick Chine on the shore at Totland, on the western tip of the Isle of Wight. Its crews watched over the Needles and the narrow western entrance to the Solent, where strong tides and hidden rocks have wrecked many ships.
History
Even before there was a lifeboat, rescues were made here: in April 1849 the brig Love and Unity broke up on the Needles, and all but one boy were saved. A local committee placed a lifeboat at Totland in 1870, and in 1885 the RNLI opened its own station here, moving the earlier boat to Shanklin. The station closed in 1924, when a motor lifeboat was placed at nearby Yarmouth, which still has a lifeboat station today.
Visiting
Totland Bay has a beach, a Victorian pier and a seafront path round to Colwell Bay. The Needles and Headon Warren, with their sweeping views, are a short walk away.
About island lifeboat stations
All lifeboat stations →On islands, the lifeboat is often the only help that can reach someone in trouble at sea, and island lifeboat crews cover some of the most exposed waters around Britain and Ireland. Here you will find the lifeboat stations on the islands we cover, with their history and the boats they launch.
