| Thames Division |
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The Marine Support Unit (MSU, commonly known by its prior name of '''Thames Divison''') is a Central Operations unit of the Metropolitan Police , that polices the River Thames in London . Based at Wapping Police Station and having 22 vessels at its disposal, the unit also provides support to the rest of the Metropolitan Police when dealing with incidents in any waterway in London. A specialist ''Underwater and Confined Spaces Search Team'' carries out specialist searches throughout the Metropolitan Police District . HISTORY Thames Division was formed in 1839 with the amalgamation of the Marine Police Force with the Metropolitan Police Force . Initially patrols were conducted in rowing boats, some of which remained in use until 1905. Impetus to change was provided when, on 3 September 1878 the steam Collier ''Bywell Castle'' ran into the pleasure Steamer '' Princess Alice '' in Galleons Reach with the loss of over 600 lives. The subsequent inquest and inquiry recommended that Thames Division should have steam launches, as rowing galleys had shown themselves to be inadequate for police duty, and the first two were commissioned in the mid 1880s. In 1910 the first motor vessels were introduced. On 20 August 1989 the Marchioness Disaster occurred when the aggregate dredger ''Bowbelle'' collided with the passenger vessel ''Marchioness'' near Cannon Street Railway Bridge . Four MSU patrol boats assisted in the rescue of 87 people. 51 people died and following subsequent inquiries, the Government asked the Maritime And Coastguard Agency , the Port Of London Authority and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) to work together to set up a dedicated Search and Rescue service for the tidal River Thames. Consequently, on the 2 January 2002 , the RNLI set up four lifeboat stations at Gravesend , Tower Pier , Chiswick Pier and Teddington taking over the role of primary search and rescue service on the Thames from the MSU. In 2001 , Thames Division was renamed the Marine Support Unit. EXTERNAL LINK |
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