True Grit

Every year, the men and women of the RNLI’s lifeboat crews rescue thousands of people in distress, and a unique photography project has set out to celebrate their selfless actions.

- Anna Lambert 

Storms may howl and dark waters surge, but nothing stops RNLI crews from racing to help people in danger. Covering 19,000 miles of coastline around the UK and the Republic of Ireland, they’re called out over 20 times a day. In 2015 alone they saved 348 lives and rescued 7,973 people. ‘It’s awe-inspiring to see the lengths these crews will go to in a bid to save the life of just a single soul,’ says photographer Jack Lowe, who is on a mammoth mission to make a visual record of our coastal guardians.

Since 2015, Jack and his mobile darkroom – a decommissioned NHS ambulance aptly named Neena – have trundled from Shetland to Land’s End shooting pics for the Lifeboat Station Project. This is a scheme to photograph all 237 RNLI lifeboat stations and their crews over a five-year period. He’s been warmly welcomed at every station and given a seagull’s eye view of what makes the crews tick. ‘What strikes me most about the RNLI crews I’ve met is that they’re totally unassuming and unflappable, but when they’re dealing with gale-force winds and 10m-high waves, they need to be,’ he says.

INSPIRED BY HEROES