St Ouen's Bay emergency phones decommissioned

New signs have been installed along St Ouen’s Bay, advising beach users to contact Jersey Coastguard on the 999 service in the event of an emergency.

 

In the coming weeks, seven telephones sited along St Ouen’s Bay, which historically acted as an emergency direct link to Jersey Coastguard, will be decommissioned. The telephones have become increasingly unreliable. On occasions, they self activate and then cut out, requiring an unnecessary call-out by Jersey Coastguard.

 

Careful consideration

 
The Harbour Master, Jersey Harbours, Barry Goldman, said "Advances in communication technology with mobile devices and improved network coverage have allowed for a more reliable and consistent way for members of the public to report emergency incidents around Jersey’s coastline.  We have considered the case for the removal of these outdated emergency telephones carefully and have concluded that, with the danger of resources being diverted in response to a false alarm, their retention cannot be justified."

 

New signs have been installed and telephones removed from the following sites along St Ouen’s Bay:

The removal of the emergency telephones will have no impact on the RNLI lifeguard summer service, which will continue to patrol St Ouen’s Bay between May and September.