A HAMPSHIRE RNLI lifeboat station was one of the busiest in the country last year, new figures show.

Crew members from Calshot station were called out a record 109 times, rescuing a total of 83 people from the area's waters.

The station rose two places in its overall ranking from 2006 to become the seventh busiest of the country's 233 RNLI lifeboat stations.

The news comes as volunteers from the busy station take part in the RNLI's annual day of fundraising on Friday.

In one stunt, Iwan Morris, a product manager at a Hampshire electronic supplier, will turn up at his day job dressed in his bright yellow rescue gear to raise money for the charity's SOS day. Iwan, 41, from Blackfield, said: "The idea came from a colleague of mine in our marketing department. She is planning to sell sweets from her desk to raise money for the RNLI and joked that I should come to work in a crewmember's kit. I thought why not?"

Brian Laughlin, lifeboat operations manager at Calshot, says he is proud of Iwan's efforts to highlight the work of his crew.

He said: "I am delighted that Iwan is bringing the work of the RNLI to the attention of others, perhaps even those who are not aware of what we do. Given that we are a charity and we rely entirely on donations from supporters, it is vital that we raise the profile of the Institution wherever possible.

"Calshot is a busy lifeboat station - we had 109 shouts last year, the seventh busiest station in the UK - and like all stations we need supporters and volunteers to enable us to save lives at sea.'' There are six RNLI stations across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. For details log on to www.rnli.org.uk/sos or ring 0845 121 4999.