Coastguard chiefs in Tayside have launched an appeal for new volunteers ahead of a new station opening in Dundee.
The call comes amid an increase in water-based emergencies.
The new station will be housed in a formerly derelict building owned by Port of Dundee at Stannergate Road and will be staffed by 11 rescue officers.
They will respond to emergencies in Dundee and Perth, lessening the workload of the Carnousie station which currently covers these areas.
Officers are also being sought for existing stations in Angus, including Montrose and Arbroath.
Coastguard area commander Ross Greenhill said: “We are opening a new station in Dundee, this is currently being worked on.
“It should be up and running later this year.
“The new station will enable us to respond to incidents in Dundee and Perth quicker, rather than going from Carnoustie where we are currently having to respond from.
“This was decided in the past seven to eight months, then we needed time to find a suitable location.
“The building is property of Dundee Port and they were looking to potentially demolish it, but we said we would be interested in taking it on.”
Mr Greenhill explained that some of the existing volunteers will transfer from Carnoustie to serve the new Dundee station and a further seven will be recruited.
To qualify, applicants must be 18 or over with a UK driving licence, physically fit and they must be available at short notice.
Mr Greenhill added:Â “Availability is the big issue.
“We need someone who is maybe self-employed or has a flexible working environment.
“Emergencies can be unpredictable, many happen in the evening but some happen in the daytime too.”
He said: “Over the years there has been a slight increase in incidents.
“We do a constant review of our locations to make sure we have enough resources where they’re most needed.
“Having officers coming in from Carnoustie was just too much.”
The bulk of the Coastguard’s work in the are consists of helping people in trouble in the water in the Tay, on the Tay Bridge and in the water in Perth.
Applicants don’t need to have experience as they would be given full training.
Anyone interested can email area3@mcga.gov.uk and is asked to include in the subject “application Request”, plus the location they’re applying for.
The deadline for applications is January 31.
