Bridlington's Storm Amy rescue of a stricken Dutch trawler is on BBC iPlayer now, in Saving Lives at Sea, which aired on BBC Two on 13 October.

Bridlington’s volunteer lifeboat crew are on national television this week. Their rescue during Storm Amy last October features in BBC Two’s Saving Lives at Sea at 8pm on Tuesday 13 October.

Updated 15 October: the episode aired on BBC Two at 8pm on Tuesday 13 October, and a day later in Wales. It is on BBC iPlayer now, 58 minutes long, with an audio-described version.

The RNLI announced the episode on 7 October. Its release gives the day as Wednesday 13 October, but 13 October is a Tuesday, and the BBC’s own schedule lists the programme at 8pm on Tuesday. It is episode 9 of 10 in series 11, titled “Rip Current Surfer”. (RNLI, 7 October 2026)

What the episode shows

The BBC’s episode page says that during the peak of Storm Amy, Bridlington’s lifeboat is tasked to a Dutch trawler that has lost power 13 miles off the Yorkshire coast. Bridlington shares the hour with four other stations:

  • Porthcawl, where a dog walker spots a surfer in trouble below the cliffs at Rest Bay
  • Crosshaven, in Ireland, called to an elderly sailor with a broken leg during a yacht race
  • Calshot, searching in thick fog for a motorboat in the Solent shipping lanes
  • Chiswick, after reports of a submerged car in the Thames

The programme was made by the production company Blast, which the RNLI says filmed at the station. Mike Milner, Bridlington RNLI’s volunteer press officer, said: “We are proud that the dedication and commitment of our volunteer crew will be showcased on Saving Lives at Sea.”

Two launches into the storm

The rescue ran over Friday 3 and Saturday 4 October 2025. The RNLI’s own accounts, published that week, set out how it unfolded. (Bridlington RNLI, 5 October 2025 · Scarborough RNLI, 6 October 2025)

The casualty was a 24-metre fishing vessel of 130 tonnes, with four people on board. It had suffered a mechanical failure about 23 nautical miles east of Scarborough and was drifting, unable to anchor. Scarborough’s lifeboat launched at 11.16am and took it under tow towards the Humber. Scarborough Harbour was ruled out because the vessel drew four metres, more than the neap tide allowed.

After more than five hours of towing, the seas had become, in the Bridlington release’s words, “incredibly rough”. The Coastguard called Bridlington at 5pm. The lifeboat launched at 5.54pm and reached the two vessels at 7.17pm, about 13 nautical miles south east of the town. The coxswains agreed to pass the tow to Bridlington.

Heading for Grimsby against gale force winds, the crew could manage only 2.8 knots. Just after midnight the Humber lifeboat was tasked to help, and a vessel requested by the trawler’s owners took over the tow. Bridlington’s release calls it a tug. Scarborough’s names it as the fishing vessel Nordstjernen, skippered by a Filey RNLI crew member.

Bridlington’s crew were back on the beach at 5.45am, nearly 12 hours after launching. By 7.37am the lifeboat was refuelled and back on service.

At 12.12pm the call came again. The tow was making no headway off Flamborough Head. The lifeboat launched at 12.51pm, took the trawler under tow at 1.19pm and brought it to a safe area to anchor. The crew were home at 6.18pm.

Timeline of Bridlington lifeboat's two Storm Amy launches. Friday 3 October 2025: tasked 5pm, launched 5.54pm, took over the tow 7.17pm. Saturday 4 October: Humber lifeboat tasked 12.16am, back on the beach 5.45am, back on service 7.37am, second call 12.12pm, launched 12.51pm, took the tow 1.19pm, back on the beach 6.18pm, back on service 7.30pm.
Graphic by East Riding Today. Times from the RNLI's releases of 5 and 6 October 2025.
Share this chartFacebookWhatsAppX

Andy Rodgers, Bridlington RNLI’s coxswain, said at the time that it “was a challenging tasking for both the Scarborough and Bridlington crews”, and thanked the crew for their commitment in “very testing North Sea conditions”.

What it means for you

  • Watch it: on BBC iPlayer. It aired on BBC Two at 8pm on Tuesday 13 October.
  • Every one of those crew is a volunteer. The RNLI is a charity, independent of the Coastguard and the government, and is funded by donations and legacies.
  • If you see someone in trouble at sea or on the coast, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard. At sea on a boat, use VHF channel 16.

The station’s launches and news are on its RNLI station page. Flamborough’s inshore crew, about four miles up the coast, marked a long career in September: David Freeman’s 54 years with the lifeboat.

Sources