NEW high-grade optics are set to boost potentially lifesaving cover on a stretch of the Roseland Coast, thanks to a generous charitable donation to the National Coastwatch Institution (NCI).

A £700 cash boost from Hayle-based holiday letting business Classic Cottages has enabled volunteer watchkeepers in Portscatho to invest in a pair of Fujinon stabilised long-range binoculars.

NCI Portscatho is one of 13 NCI stations strategically placed along Cornwall's 422 miles of beautiful but equally perilous coastline. Each is manned by a team of fully-trained volunteers who keep a daily daylight watch, providing a vital link with emergency services including HM Coastguard and a contact point on land for sea and shore users.

So far this year, Cornwall’s NCI stations have dealt with almost 70 incidents, helping to co-ordinate the rescue of jet skiers, paddle boarders and windsurfers, and assisting injured coast path walkers, broken down-vessels and even lost dogs.

Station manager Peter Evans is among some 30 volunteers who man NCI Portscatho. “Our binoculars are a key tool in our day-to-day operations, and are already making a real difference to our ability to identify and log passing vessels,” he said.

“Having the right equipment makes all the difference in ensuring we can spot potential dangers and keep people safe along the coastline.”

The NCI was launched in 1994 after the loss of two fishermen off the Cornish coast near a recently closed coastguard lookout. The first station opened on The Lizard; now in its 30th year, NCI has 58 stations around England and Wales, with more in the pipeline.