MARITIME volunteers say the closure of Portland Coastguard station will have an impact on other voluntary groups as well.

Weymouth and Portland Maritime Volunteer Service (MVS) are backing the Echo’s campaign to site a new coastguard supercentre in the borough rather than in Southampton or Portsmouth.

The voluntary group meets once a week in the current station on Weymouth Harbourside to learn about the tides, area and navigation to help them in their role.

They are currently looking to get funding for their own base but if the coastguard station closes the volunteers may have nowhere to go.

The MVS has been going for a year and its role includes helping the harbourmaster to man the slipways and going out on harbour patrols. They will also be helping out during the Olympics.

Head of Weymouth and Portland MVS Rob Chick said that locating the new supercentre in the borough was an ‘opening’ for the borough.

He said: “Portland Coastguard Station is central for the whole of the southern coastal region. All the guys are very up on the tides and conditions and all that.

“If it goes to Southampton or Portsmouth, how long will it take to respond?”

He added: “It’s an opening for the borough. What’s the difference in having the base in Southampton or Portsmouth to having it here?

“There are already a couple of ideas of where it could go, including Osprey Quay. It would be very centralised to cover the entire south coastline from Cornwall to Dover.”

The Weymouth and Portland volunteers have been handing out the Echo’s petitions to other branches along the coast and said they are getting a good response.

MVS volunteer Lee Sketchley said: “The campaign is fantastic. The amount of lives that have been saved by the coastguards so far is phenomenal. To lose the facility would be a disaster. We are totally behind the campaign.”

The Maritime Volunteer Service is looking to recruit new members. For more information email Rob Chick on robkarly2008@aol.com