Readers of the Western Morning News are poised to reach their cash target to fuel each of the Westcountry’s 34 lifeboats for a year.

The Fuel for the Lifeboats fund was launched to mark the 175th anniversary of the lifeboat service, which saves around 134 lives a year in the south west.

The ambitious £40,000 target received two boosts recently.

When the Western Morning News was awarded 1999 BT West of England Daily Newspaper of the Year in the regional press awards, it decide to donate the £500 prize to the appeal.

And last weekend the public put their hands in their pockets when lifeboat stations were opened free of charge to visitors, where each venue provided entertainment, stalls and souvenir shops.

The Western Morning News supports the service by giving a high profile on its pages – vital when it relies on publicity to recruit crew and raise the £80m a year it needs nationally to keep the service running.

Reporter Noel Sliney told readers: “Lifeboat stations around Devon and Cornwall are among the busiest in the country, owing to the peninsula geography.

“Last year there were nearly 700 launches around our coastline: 349 in Devon and 315 in Cornwall.

“Those figures represent two launches a day and account for 17 percent of the number of launches nationwide.”

Those launches brought 437 people safely back to shore, 134 of whom may not have survived if the lifeboats hadn’t put to sea. They also saved 50 craft, large and small.

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