Princess Anne to visit Canvey National Coastwatch station

Her Royal Highness will tour the National Coastwatch station at the Island Yacht Club, in Point Road.

Princess Anne is a royal patron of the National Coastwatch Institution and will meet the volunteer duty watchkeepers, who are part of a national organisation with 60 stations and some 2,600 volunteers who give their time to the charity.

After meeting the volunteer duty watchkeepers, she will then attend a reception at the Island Yacht Club where she will meet more volunteers, present four long service awards and unveil a plaque.

This will mark another royal engagement for the island as back on June 27, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, visited Charfleet Book Bindery, in Shannon Way.

She opened a new state-of-the-art bindery facility where bookbinders can continue turning printed paper into books and catalogues by hand or by using machines.

The station moved to its present site in October 2021 from Holehaven, which is at the western end of Canvey.

The National Coastwatch Institute provide the “eyes and ears” along the coast, monitor radio channels and provide a listening watch in poor visibility.

The volunteers are fully trained to deal with emergencies, offering a variety of skills and experience, to ensure that high standards are met.

This year so far, 816 incidents have been reported, and the watchkeepers have done 2,143,82 watch hours.

For more information about the National Coastwatch Institute and to sign up to become a volunteer, visit: nci.org.uk.