Annex: Visit notes
Dover Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC)
1. Those attending from the Committee were: Mrs Gwyneth
Dunwoody MP (Chairman), Mr Brian H. Donohoe MP, Clive Efford MP,
David Bates (Clerk), Frances Allingham (Committee Assistant),
and James O'Sullivan (Sandwich Student). The Committee arrived
in Dover in the morning of 3 February and returned to London in
the afternoon.
2. The Committee was met at Dover Priory station
by Mr Richard Martin, Coastal Resources Manager from the Maritime
and Coastguard Agency (MCA) and Ms Tess van de Vliet, Deputy Station
Officer for the Langdon Coastguard Rescue Team (CRT), and taken
to Dover Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre situated on the
cliffs over Dover harbour. On arrival the Committee was welcomed
to the Centre by Captain Stephen Bligh, MCA Chief Executive, and
Mr John Astbury, MCA Director of Operations and Chief Coastguard.
3. A presentation by Mr James Findlay, Head of Information
Communications Technology introduced the Committee to the Integrated
Coastguard Communications System (ICCS), which has an interface
with the VISION incident management system and the BOSS system.
The ICCS project started in 1999 and was completed in 2003. The
VISION upgrade commenced in 2002 and was completed at all sites
in November 2004.
4. ICCS has a user-friendly (touch-screen) interface
for communications handling. It allows the management of telephone
calls and VHF radio transmissions, and incorporates a comprehensive
telephone directory. All calls and transmissions are electronically
recorded. This system is in use in other emergency services' control
rooms.
5. VISION is a full geographical incident management
system which uses a graphic presentation system. It enables search
and rescue incidents to be logged instantly. VISION has brought
the MCA the ability to pair rescue co-ordination centres. If a
centre is out of action or unable to respond for any reason, its
paired centre can manage the incident. The Committee was told
that, through pairing, resources and workloads can be shared.
Each of the two centres can view what the other is doing.
6. The BOSS (Browser Operational System Status) interface
provides real-time links to other Coastguard co-ordination centres'
systems. It provides real-time remote monitoring of incidents
at all Coastguard stations to all Coastguard operational staff,
MCA HQ operational staff and other authorised users. Statistics
and reports can be generated by the system.
7. Dover MRCC is unique among rescue co-ordination
centres because it has responsibility for monitoring the Dover
Strait Traffic Separation Scheme. This two lane scheme operates
to avoid collisions in the Dover Strait. Each lane is limited
to one direction of traffic flow. The Channel Navigation Information
Service (CNIS) was introduced in 1972. CNIS forms a large part
of Dover MRCC's workload. All vessels over 300 gross tonnes transiting
the Dover Strait are required to 'report in' with either Dover
MRCC or Gris Nez in France, depending on their direction of travel.
Information reported must include details of any hazardous cargo
on board.
8. The Dover system includes an ability to receive
AIS (Automatic Identification System) transmissions from suitably
equipped vessels. This technology is mandatory under SOLAS for
all ships over 300gtn and transmits information about the ship,
including its name, destination, cargo, speed and location. AIS
signals can be received by 32 compatible radio masts around the
UK. AIS links in to the CNIS radar picture to give the operators
at Dover MRCC a complete picture of the Dover Strait and the ships
transiting it. The MCA makes AIS information available to other
government agencies.
9. The Committee was given a tour of the co-ordination
centre by Area Operations Manager, Murray Milligan. In the Operations
room there was explanation of incident handling and the Committee
met managers Gordon Wise, Mike Painter, Trevor Dowle and District
Operations Manager Spike Hughes.
10. In the afternoon, a presentation was made to
the Committee about Lifeskills Kent, a planned education centre
which will inform young people about the everyday dangers of life,
including activity and safety on the coast.
11. The Committee met members of Langdon Coastguard
Rescue Team and saw their vehicles and equipment. John Marshall,
an auxiliary coastguard volunteer, and Tess van de Vliet discussed
with the Committee the role of CRTs and volunteer auxiliaries.
Langdon CRT has a great deal of experience of cliff rescue and
the Committee discussed illustrated accounts of call-outs with
the team.
12. Some Members were shown the Coastguard helicopter
based at Portland and taken on a short flight over Dover harbour.
The Committee returned to the operations room to observe a search
and rescue demonstration involving the helicopter and RNLI's Dover
Lifeboat.
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