The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) have four lifeboat stations on the River Thames and other stations around the Thames Estuary but Tower Lifeboat Station in Westminster is so busy that they have crews on station 24/7 to reduce response times (only 4 RNLI stations operate this way, the others being Chiswick and Gravesend on the Thames and the Humber crew at Spurn Point).
The station was initially established near Tower Bridge later moving to the site on the Northern bank of the river just downstream of Waterloo Bridge but the original name was retained. The current station has a long history of serving the Thames as it was originally a River Police station from 1874 being sold to the RNLI in 2004 and refurbished to be a lifeboat station, entering service in January 2006. Some 17 years later the old pier is no longer fit for purpose and so a project was started to construct a new, purpose designed, pier to replace the old one.
The base pontoon for the new station was constructed by Harland & Wolff at their Appledore site in Devon and measures in at around 53m by 14m at a weight of approximately 450 tonnes. It was towed to the Royal Docks in London for fitting out by tug GOLIATH that coincidentally was also constructed at Appledore but back in 1956.
The lead contractor for the construction of the actual superstructure is Herbosch Kiere Marine Contractors Ltd who have been involved in numerous marine civil engineering projects along the Thames and they are partnering with the Livett’s Group for marine support.
Quite often with this type of project the work is either done in the KGV Lock or alongside on the Airport Cut berth as these areas have direct access for lorries and cranes but for this project most of the works are being done alongside the Dolphins in the KGV Dock which is a more constrained operating location. [Note: the plans for the significantly delayed redevelopment of Albert Island show that both the Lock-side and Airport Cut berths will have limited access for cranes or deliveries in the future which might reduce the appeal of the location and seems to go against the London Plan Blue Ribbon strategy!].
As a hobbyist photographer it is not always possible to capture all of the key stages of the project’s evolution so unfortunately I missed the construction of the building’s frame and installation of the insulation panels but did capture the end result which gave a good impression of the scale of the new station.
After constructing the building frame the pontoon was then moved back on to the Dolphin in KGV Dock for the next stage of the works.
Scaffolding going up around the structure – not the most accessible of worksites.
Work on the structure continued with the cutting out of the window and door apertures in the walls.
The wintery weather in mid-December gave the new structure a bit of a test – the roof held the weight of a covering of snow and the pontoon wasn’t affected by the water freezing around it (the latter not likely to be an issue in the flowing waters of the Thames when the new station is in situ).
As work concluded for the holiday season a quick look at the building revealed that a lot more work had been completed on the walls and roof with a new layer of materials added and the door and window spaces boarded up against the weather although some with glazing installed are visible.
During January 2023 the works on the new station build have continued with at least one shuffle of the pontoon in to the KGV Lock to load material – the tug FELIX, operated by Thamescraft Drydocking, provided the motive power.
January also saw the Lifeboat Pier at Westminster being formally stood down from service with the Tower RNLI crews temporarily operating from HMS President RNR, this news being formally announced on 13th January.
On 24th January the old Pier was moved by tug from Westminster to the KGV Dock where works will be undertaken to convert it in to a floating recharging station for battery powered vessels as part of the Port of London Authority’s drive towards Net Zero through the use of alternative power solutions for vessels. The converted Pier will become one of a growing number of recharging points on the Thames.
A short video of the old Pier being delivered to the KGV Dock can be seen below:
Update – early February 2023
Work continues on the station with layers of insulation and paneling being added to the roof and walls – not the most exciting subject for photos!
Preparation works at Waterloo Bridge also moved forward with the deployment of crane barge SEA DEVIL and a long-reach excavator on pontoon HAVEN SEABREEZE which will be used to dredge the river in the new mooring location.
A few more pictures showing the work to the roof and wall progressing in mid February.
Site preparation at Waterloo Bridge also moving forwards with tug PROSPER moving the spoil from the dredging works down river to Rainham and HOUND DOG with pontoon P2 moving equipment and pile casings up river on 15th February with first of the new pile columns in place the next day.
Update: 17th February 2023
Work on the roof of the station looks substantially complete with solar panels having been installed along with station roof lettering of RNLI on each of the river facing outer building sections (the central core roof slopes towards the mooring point).
Update week ending 25th February 2023
Preparation works on the moorings at Waterloo Bridge continued with Multicat SEA DOG doing a couple of trips to collect component parts from the KGV Lock at the start of the week.
Major structural works are complete with most of the scaffolding removed and the land-side roof now has a large RNLI badge above the word “Lifeboats” mounted on it. Still some electrical works to be completed on the exterior of the building and whatever internal work remains but the station will soon be ready to be moved to the site at Waterloo Bridge.
Update week ending 5th March 2023
Most of the works are now inside the building but Multicat SEA DOG spent over a week in the Dock providing transport and craneage services for what appeared to be the external decking areas. As part of this activity the Station was rotated a couple of times to enable better access for the crane.
On 6th May, probably due to the blustery wind conditions in the Dock, BULLDOG arrived to assist with turning the pontoon around again. A video of the turn can be seen below.
The rotation of the pontoon also allowed for the comparison of the two faces of the new station when it is in place at Waterloo Bridge.
Update week ending 19th March 2023
Not that much change in the external appearance over the last couple of weeks other than work on the external decking plus safety railings being installed along with some further framework to hold more paneling.
The station also had another turn in the Dock to enable access to the reverse side whilst also providing a different angle to view the new station from.
Slightly different perspective of the new @TowerRNLI #LifeboatStation – this view (but with main logo facing left) will be similar to that from Waterloo Bridge when on site.
CHILI DOG & SEA DOG turning the new #TowerRNLI #LifeboatStation. #dlr_blog
Originally tweeted by Andrew Christy (@AJBC_1) on March 17, 2023.
Update week ending 26th March 2023
Most of the external works are now completed with the decking in place and almost all of the safety railings now fitted.The station name board signs are also in place and include a note of thanks to all the donors who have supported the project, with particular acknowledgement to the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Officers’ Association.
CPBS Marine’s Multicat SHAKE DOG visited KGV Dock to collect the SEA DEVIL crane barge again to take it up to the Waterloo Bridge site and it was also used to transport the new link-span bridge that will connect the embankment to the new Lifeboat Station.
Over the weekend @CPBSMarine‘s SHAKE DOG moved @HerbKiereMCLtd crane barge SEA DEVIL back up to Waterloo Bridge with the link-span for the new #TowerLBS. #dlr_blog
Fast motion video of SHAKE DOG towing SEA DEVIL along up the #Thames #dlr_blog
Originally tweeted by Andrew Christy (@AJBC_1) on March 27, 2023.
Update 31st March 2023
Late afternoon of 29th March Multicats SEA DOG & SHAKE DOG with workboat SNOOP DOG arrived at the KGV Lock and loaded the remaining components of the mooring collars before repositioning alongside the new pier in the KGV Dock.
Early the next morning (30th March 2023) the delivery journey began – seemed to be a slight delay in getting the Bascule Bridge to lift (a seemingly recurring issue in the Royal Docks).
Unfortunately for a project of significant public interest to Londoners there was no advance notice of the date and time of the move up the Thames through London – this meant that luck (mainly bad for me!!) dictated what you got to witness.
I just managed to catch the group passing through the Thames barrier.
I eventually caught up with the group as they approached West India Pier where SEA DOG moved in to position as stern tug for the transit through the bridges and GOLDEN STAR was waiting carrying a welcoming committee.
I then waited at Tower Bridge for the group’s arrival – a little surprised that a welcoming bridge lift hadn’t been arranged but then again it was during the morning peak time!
PLA Harbour Master’s launch BARNES had also joined the group at Canary Wharf to provide an escort through the bridges and higher density traffic area of the central Thames area.
The backlighting also made getting photos from my vantage point challenging to say the least!
RNLI Lifeboat E-07 HIRLEY BURLY joined the group at Tower Bridge to escort the new station up to Waterloo Bridge.
The new station passing the City of London.
I had hoped to be able to get ahead of the group but that wasn’t possible so I saw the arrival at Waterloo Bridge from alongside and then I repositioned up on to Waterloo Bridge to get some shots of the new station in situ and to watch the attachment of the mooring collars.
Later in the day the crane barge SEA DEVIL had moved alongside the new pier ready to install the link-span .
There is a little more work to do to the new station and there will be a period of testing before it is declared operational but this is expected to be during April 2023.
An interesting project to have followed from the arrival of the pontoon to seeing the finished station on site.
The following vessels are known to have contributed to the project through the provision of a variety of towage, transport and/or lifting services.
| operator | vessel |
|---|---|
| CPBS Marine | BULLDOG |
| CHILI DOG | |
| HOUND DOG | |
| SEA DOG | |
| SHAKE DOG | |
| SNOOP DOG | |
| Livett’s | ARTEMIS |
| THAMES VIXEN | |
| Marine Support Thames | PROSPER |
| Palmers Marine Services | HORTON |
| Thamescraft Drydocking | FELIX |
| Other craft | |
| Tug | GOLIATH |
| Herbosch-Kiere Crane Barge | SEA DEVIL |
| Red 7 Marine Pontoon | HAVEN SEABREEZE |
| Marine Support Thames Barge | PRODUCER |
| CPBS – passenger boat (welcome committee) | GOLDEN STAR |
Final update – on Friday, 28th April 20223, the Tower RNLI temporary detachment at HMS President RNR stood down with operations transferring to the new station at Waterloo Bridge.
On Friday, 23rd June 2023 HRH The Duke of Kent officially opened the new Tower Lifeboat Station.
The RNLI is a charity and the cost of replacing the lifeboat station is considerable so please consider supporting their appeal by clicking here.
More pictures from the project can be seen here.
Dock, Lock and River Blog (#dlr_blog) 