Great Yarmouth: Coastguard to Shut Next Spring

It's been confirmed Norfolk and Suffolk's coastguard will close next Spring.

The site at Great Yarmouth handles rescues across the two counties.

But from next May it'll shut and emergencies calls will be taken from Yorkshire and Essex instead.

HM Coastguard say the decision won't put people's safety at risk.

Sir Alan Massey, Chief Executive of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said: "Safety is our top priority and I am confident that HM Coastguard will maintain the same high quality search and rescue service as they always have done."

"By 2015, HM Coastguard’s new network will be operational with a national Maritime Operations Centre at its core.  We will deliver a more integrated search and rescue coordination service for the UK, taking full advantage of modern communications technology and enabling any centre to support others across the network during busy periods, thus sharing the work load.”