Chiswick lifeboat crew in west London has been named the second busiest rescue station in UK and Ireland.
The RNLI lifeboat station on Corney Reach Way launched 219 times, rescued 116 people and saved 11 lives on the River Thames last year, according to new figures released by RNLI.
Some of the lifesaving missions included crew rescuing a group of nine teenage rowers after they capsized; saving a man who was close to freezing to death on the Thames near Fulham; and pulling people from the water when a rowing boat split in half and sank after hitting Barnes Bridge.
Chiswick lifeboat crew also assisted after a narrow boat collided with a houseboat moored at a River Thames pier in Hammersmith.
A Chiswick RNLI spokesman said: "The tidal Thames is equivalent to over 70 miles of densely populated coastline so it is not surprising that the London Lifeboat stations on the tideway are the busiest in the UK and Ireland.
"Many of the 116 people rescued by Chiswick RNLI lifeboat have been involved in incidents which the lifeboat crew have prevented from becoming worse but in eleven cases those rescued would not have survived without the swift response of the lifeboat.
"This confirms the ongoing need for the 24/7 dedicated search and rescue service on London’s busy river."
The RNLI's Tower lifeboat station, located next to Waterloo Bridge, had its busiest ever year in 2014, having launched 543 times, rescued 104 people and saved 16 lives - making it the busiest of the charity's 236 lifeboat stations.
Further west along the River Thames, Teddington RNLI's volunteer lifeboat crew launched 69 times and rescued 11 people.
Together, the three London lifeboat stations rescued 231 people in 2014 - enough to fill two-and-a-half London double-decker buses - and saved 27 people's lives.
Gareth Morrison, RNLI's lifesaving delivery manager, said: "No other RNLI lifeboat stations are surrounded by a city of more than eight million people, which goes some way to explaining why our Tower and Chiswick crews are the busiest.
"And with London’s rising population likely to reach record levels, and millions more people set to use the River Thames for travel in the coming years, the RNLI’s London lifeboat crews life-saving work will become even more vital.
"However, as a charity we can’t continue to save lives without the generosity and support of the public , so I’d like to thank everyone whose donations and fundraising work enabled us to save 27 lives and rescue 231 people in London last year."
So far in 2015, Chiswick lifeboat crew have gone out to seven incidents and rescued six people.
www.chiswicklifeboat.org.uk
*A special comedy night and raffle draw in support of the Chiswick RNLI Lifeboat station is being held at the George IV pub, 185 Chiswick High Road, on Thursday, February 5, at 8pm.
Tickets cost £13 online at https://eventbrite.co.uk/event/14900151755/
Doors open 7.30pm.
