According to local British Sussex media on October 12th, after a thrilling rescue mission at sea, a Chinese student presented a traditional gift to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's Newhaven Volunteer Rescue Team (Newhaven RNLI) as a sign of gratitude.
According to the RNLI press release, the incident occurred in May 2026. At that time, Li Zeyang, a Chinese student studying in London, and his companion were caught in high tide near SevenSisters in the UK. They were stranded on the beach and were eventually rescued by the RNLI’s New Haven volunteer rescue team. Last month, he returned to the lifeboat station to express his gratitude to the rescuers.
Li Zeyang loves this coastline in Sussex County, UK very much. During his study abroad, he visited this place eight times. He saw a post on Chinese social media that highly recommended hiking along the beach below the cliffs, claiming that the route could be completed in less than an hour. However, the post did not mention or warn tourists about the risk of getting trapped during high tide.
The two walked on the beach for no more than an hour, when the tide suddenly rose, cutting off their safe path back.
"It was absolutely terrifying at the time." Li Zheyang recalled, "We knew we could no longer safely return to the beach, so we had to think of other options. There was no cell phone signal, so we used our camera flash to send out SOS distress signals into the sea."
Fortunately, a ship spotted the distress signals sent by Li Zeyang and his companion, and reported them to the British Coast Guard. Subsequently, the Coast Guard dispatched members of the New Haven Rescue Team to carry out the rescue operation.
"At that time I thought I was going to die." Li Ze Yang said, "I even planned to record a video saying goodbye to my family and friends, but just then, the rescue boat arrived. I immediately felt relieved."
In September this year, Li Zeyang returned to the New Haven lifeboat station to personally thank four rescuers: Dan, Kath, Steve, and Rich for their life-saving efforts.
In China, there is a tradition where people give "golden flags" (Jin Qi) to those who saved their lives, such as doctors. Li Zeya explained that this custom is less common in the digital age, but I believe it's a good way to express gratitude to the New Black Volunteer Rescue Team.
Li Zeyang specifically ordered this beautiful red banner in China. The banner is adorned with golden tassels and decorations, and it bears a thank-you message in both Chinese and English dedicated to the New Haven Lifeboat Rescue Team: "Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda."
RNLI stated that today, this banner has been solemnly hung in the lifeboat station.
