Lifeboat pontoon damaged in 'senseless' vandalism

The boat lift, railings and decking were damaged, the charity said

Volunteers have been left "deeply saddened" after young people caused thousands of pounds' worth of damage to a lifeboat pontoon.

Hamble Lifeboat was berthed at its station at Hamble Quay in Hampshire on Monday afternoon when the vandalism took place.

Children were seen "holding onto the railings" and "rocking the pontoon", according to the charity.

Station manager Paul Ackland said the "senseless" act could have put lives in danger.

"If we'd had a call-out, we would have been delayed five or 10 minutes - that could have been someone's life," he said.

The lifeboat will operate out of Port Hamble Marina while the pontoon is fixed

Hamble Lifeboat was founded by village residents in 1968 and is run independently from other lifeboat charities.

Regular search and rescue operations are carried out by the crew, who are all volunteers.

In a post on social media, the organisation appealed to families to step in.

"When it is vandalised, there's a chance it cannot perform its life-saving duties," it read.

"Parents, we urgently need your help to ensure children understand the potential consequences of such actions."

The charity has two boats that are used on a six-monthly rotation

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Ackland said the charity would now have to raise money to repair the boat lift, railings and boardwalk.

"After seeing the Facebook post, MDL Port Hamble very kindly offered us a berth for the summer holidays so we have some time to fix ours," he said.

"But we're independent, we can't just phone someone up and get a new one. A new [boat lift] alone costs about £3,000."

Police said patrols in the area had been stepped up following the incident.

However, officers said the alleged damage to a pontoon barrier had not yet been formally reported to them.