Final day for coastal rescue base

A Teesside lifeboat station was closing on Saturday, despite a campaign to save the base.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) decided to close its Teesmouth station after a lengthy review.

The charity said the base was surplus to requirements, with the area effectively covered by other stations.

There had been calls to delay the closure, after a recent decision to spend more than £350,000 on a new building for the lifeboat.

Redcar and Cleveland Council urged RNLI to give the station a 12-month reprieve.

Right decision

It said it had received an offer by PD Ports of a floating berth for a lifeboat.

But the charity said it spent two years reviewing provision in the area and was confident it had made the right decision.

The RNLI said its review of cover showed there was overprovision of lifeboats in the area.

A spokeswoman said: "We have looked at the offer of a new berth, but this may not be available for three to five years.

"As we are happy with the lifeboat cover which will remain in the Tees Bay we can see no reason to postpone the closure."