Overview

• On July 10, 2025, Charles toured the RNLI station at Walmer Beach near Deal Castle and spoke with volunteers about small-boat call-outs in the English Channel.
• He honoured three crew members for their December 14, 2022 rescue that saved 43 migrants but led to four fatalities when a vessel began taking on water.
• Volunteer Daniel Sinclair described the operation as traumatic and noted that Walmer handles fewer crossings than stations in Ramsgate and Dover.
• After meeting the crews, the King joined RNLI volunteers and locals in a beach clean-up and greeted residents along Walmer Beach.
• The visit followed his Windsor Castle banquet speech calling for deeper UK-France cooperation on cross-Channel security and humanitarian challenges.