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StormFest 160 commemorates the Great Storm of 1866 and the establishment of Torbay's first Lifeboat Station later that year. It’ll see Torbay RNLI's volunteers and their families hosting a day-long series of events in-and-around the bay.

The day will begin early in the morning with a reenactment of the events of January 1866 when Teignmouth RNLI’s lifeboat was hauled overland from Teignmouth to Torquay by a team including women to come to the rescue of sailors in Tor Bay. An all-female team of the wives and partners of today’s RNLI crew - dressed in 1860’s costume – will pull a gig boat wrapped in the colours of a Victorian-era lifeboat around Teignmouth. The gig pull will continue at Babbacombe and Meadfoot before concluding with a short parade and launch at Beacon Quay, Torquay.

A flotilla of gig boats, crewed by Torbay RNLI crew members along with rowers from the Brixham Gig Row Club, will then row across Tor Bay shortly before midday accompanied by a fleet of RNLI lifeboats from Torbay, Teignmouth and other south Devon RNLI stations.

On arrival in Brixham's inner harbour in the early afternoon, a service of remembrance at Brixham's Man and Boy statue led by Helen Lovell-Smith of the Fisherman's Mission will remember 1866's tragic events. The service will also celebrate Torbay Lifeboat Station’s proud 160-year contribution to saving lives at sea in Torbay.

The day’s events will culminate with a live music and food festival during the afternoon and into the evening at The Old Coastguard House, Kings Quay, Brixham. Local residents and visitors are invited to celebrate alongside the lifeboat crew and the many other local volunteers that keep the lifeboat station running, with local food & drink, music from local bands & singers, as well as a raffle and other entertainments on offer for all the family to enjoy.