VOLUNTEER lifeboat crews were called out more than 20 times last month – their busiest May for years – despite lockdown measures.

The Southend RNLI team were paged 23 times in May to respond to emergency calls.

This is the greatest number of launches Southend Lifeboat has experienced in May for seven years, even with government advice to stay home in the first half of the month and guidance to maintain social distancing as restrictions eased.

During May the voluntary lifeboat crew were tasked to a variety of emergency situations, including beach goers being cut off by the tide, broken down vessels and people getting into difficulty whilst in the water.

This resulted in the charity having to call on its volunteer crew to respond to its pagers at various times of the day and night.

Graham Slack, volunteer Lifeboat Operations Manager, said: “I urge anyone visiting the shore around Southend to take extra care at the moment.

“In these uncertain times, it’s important for anyone considering being around the water to check carefully coastal information, tide times and conditions to ensure their own safety.”

The trend of frequent calls has continued this week with the Atlantic 85 lifeboat being launched from the pierhead boathouse at 9.11pm on Monday, with two more calls on Tuesday evening.

Martin Terry, councillor responsible for community safety and customer contact at Southend Council, said: “With the warm weather upon us, we have seen a huge influx in visitors to our beaches.

“Whilst most take care and caution when taking a dip in the water, there have been many incidents for the RNLI to respond to.

“We want everyone to have a safe and enjoyable time if and when they decide to visit Southend, so I am urging visitors to please be careful. The RNLI do fantastic work, and the Beach Welfare Officers are down the seafront advising and assisting residents.

“As well as this, they work closely with the RNLI and the council’s pier and foreshore team to ensure the appropriate provisions are in place to keep everyone safe and well.”