Maintenance checks for Alderney's relief lifeboat

The Henry Heys Duckworth was bought by the widow of its namesake

Alderney's relief lifeboat has been hauled out of the water at St Sampson's Harbour for routine maintenance.

Work on the Henry Heys Duckworth, a Trent class lifeboat from the RNLI's reserve fleet, started on Tuesday.

Clive Granger, divisional maintenance manager for the south of England, is overseeing the cleaning and engineering work.

"When the boat goes out it's got to be right as they go out in all weathers so we've got to look after them," he said.

The Henry Heys Duckworth has replaced Alderney's regular Trent class lifeboat, the Roy Barker I, while it undergoes its full five year refit in Ireland.

The relief lifeboat is expected to return to service on the evening high tide, which reaches its highest point just before 2000 BST.

While the work is undertaken the Alderney area will be covered by the St Peter Port lifeboat Spirit of Guernsey.

On Wednesday the lifeboats will swap roles as the St Peter Port lifeboat is due to undergo the same maintenance checks and Alderney's relief lifeboat will cover the Guernsey area.

The Henry Heys Duckworth was brought by the widow of its namesake after his death several months after watching the rescue efforts for the Channiland catamaran ferry which almost sank a mile off Jersey in April 1995.

He said at the time that when he died he wanted her to buy a lifeboat similar to the Alderney craft, which at the time was the prototype of the Trent class and cost £1.3m.