Kinghorn Lifeboat Station
| Inshore Lifeboat | |
|---|---|
| Launch Method | Carriage |
| Address | St James Place, Kinghorn, Fife KY3 9SY |
| Telephone | 01592 890663 |
Explore two centuries of RNLI lifeboat history, heroic rescues, and the enduring tradition of saving lives at sea.
Kinghorn Lifeboat Station sits on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth, on the Fife peninsula. Established in 1965 as part of the RNLI’s new inshore fleet, it was created to provide cover as leisure boating grew in the Forth, and has become one of the busiest stations in Scotland, covering much of the Fife and Edinburgh coastline. It operates a B-class Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat from its harbourside station.
In 1964 the RNLI placed 25 small, fast inshore lifeboats around the coast, easily launched by a few crew to respond quickly to local emergencies. Kinghorn was established on 26 June 1965 to strengthen cover in the Firth of Forth, initially with a D-class inshore lifeboat housed in a simple shed and launched by hand across the beach. On its very first launch in 1965 the crew delivered letters to residents of the islands of Inchkeith and Inchcolm to announce the station’s opening. Kinghorn was one of only three Scottish inshore stations kept operational through the winter from 1965. A new boathouse followed in 1982, and in 1985 the station received a faster twin-engined C-class lifeboat with a launching tractor.
A major upgrade in 1995 provided a two-storey station to accommodate a larger boat. The current Atlantic 85 Tommy Niven (B-836) was brought into service on 22 October 2009, funded from the bequest of Thomas Niven, and is launched by carriage and tractor.
