Judi swaps airwaves for waterways

Radio and television personality Judi Spiers is among a bunch of people who give up their time to help out on Exeter’s waterways.

Judi is now in her fourth year as a volunteer patroller with the Exeter Port Authority.

She helps out on a regular basis assisting Exeter City Council’s Harbour Patrollers under the watchful eye of Harbour Master Grahame Forshaw.

Judi is among a group of willing volunteers from a varied cross section of society. “We are a friendly bunch. We’re certainly a mixed one. We’ve ex-Royal Marines, police, an IT specialist, a steam train engineer, former mayor and councillor, gas engineer and world champion powerboat racer.

She said: “This year we’ve been joined by a former Greek radio yachting correspondent and a geographical and technical manager from the UK Hydrographic Office responsible for the maritime charts, who is so respected they have named a buoy after him!”

The team maintain the area from a mile out to sea, past Exmouth, Dawlish, Starcross, Topsham, Lympstone, and up the canal and the quay to Exeter city centre.

Judi added: “Not many people understand what we volunteers do, and seem to think we just cruise up and down, catching the rays, drinking tea, and looking for someone to stop for speeding!”

She says their responsibilities are numerous and varied but essentially making sure the environment is as safe as possible. That entails anything from clearing dead sheep, floating trees and rotting hulks, to safeguarding the gas pipes that run underneath the estuary bed, rescuing swimmers and untangling seals.

There’s also checking that the 45 navigational aids and moorings are properly maintained and enforcing byelaws, with particular focus on speeding vessels, and recording details of accidents or near misses for the Harbour Master to investigate.