ENVIRONMENT Agency workers have been spoken to by senior staff over “irresponsible parking” on a lifeboat slipway.

Aaron Freeman from Newnham complained to the EA after seeing one of their vans parked unattended with a trailer on the Beachley slipway beside the Severn Area Rescue Association boathouse last week.

“I was just visiting, but I am a regular user of the slip and understand the importance of access for other users and SARA. There’s just no excuse for this behaviour,” said Mr Freeman. 

He claimed they could have hampered a rescue attempt, including their own, if they had got into difficulties.

An EA spokesperson said: “The Environment Agency takes its responsibility for the parking of its vehicles in the correct manner very seriously.

“Staff have been reminded of the correct procedures.”

Mr Freeman said the parked vehicle had been used to launch an inflatable boat and “could have hampered the launch of a SARA lifeboat”. 

In a letter to the EA, he wrote: “I am writing to you to make you aware that on (Wednesday) June 21 at 1 pm at Beachley Point, I found part of your operations team parked in an extremely irresponsible manner.

“After launching their RIB (rigid inflatable boat), they parked their towing vehicle and trailer on the edge of the slipway limiting access to other users.

“There was another EA Ford Transit Connect van parked correctly in the large car park at the top of the slipway. Nobody was present at the slipway for me to voice my concerns.

“This is a public slipway, and it clearly states on the signage that no vehicles are to be left unattended on the slipway.

“They encroached on the main slip to such an extent that it hampered launching and made it difficult for other users reversing down the slip.” 

He added: “I found it more concerning that directly at the top of the slipway is the SARA depot and the coastguard hut that provide lifeboat rescue for this area.

“This poorly parked EA vehicle would have certainly hampered the launch of their largest rescue vessel SARA 1 and potentially cost them valuable time in the event of a call out.

“This negligence is, in my opinion, of the utmost seriousness and needs to be addressed.

“There were plenty of alternate parking places for this vehicle, including the car park at the top of the slipway, and the road that leads down to Sedbury, where I often park while using the water myself.

“In any instance, there simply is no excuse for hampering the launch of a lifeboat.

“Further, had the team come into trouble while out on the water, not only would they have hampered their own rescue, but had they not managed to get back to the vehicle in time, it would have been submerged as it was parked below the tide line, probably causing an environmental incident.”

The EA spokesman said they had since spoken to Mr Freeman about his concerns.

In April, two jet-skiers from Worcester who became stuck on the Bedwin Sands off Caldicot were rescued by SARA’s Beachley lifesavers after their car and trailer had blocked the launch of the lifeboat.

When the lifeboat arrived, they initially refused help, despite warnings about the treacherous currents, but were escorted to safety some five hours later as the incoming tide began to submerge the sandbar.