Marine Rescue Port Macquarie crew in running for global rescue award

Marine Rescue Port Macquarie has been congratulated after being named as a finalist for a prestigious international rescue award for a courageous overnight rescue mission to save three seriously injured men from a sinking motor cruiser.

The unit has been shortlisted as one of two finalists in the Outstanding Team Contribution to a Maritime Search and Rescue Operation category of the 2019 International Maritime Rescue Federation Awards, to be announced in London on September 10.

The nomination recognises the mission by nine volunteers to save the three men on board the 10m cruiser, holed when it struck a submerged object off Crescent Head in the early hours of April 14.

The volunteers are: Port Macquarie 30 crew members Chris Condon, William Richardson, Reg McGlashan, Yolanda Bosschieter, Tony Hallett, Port Macquarie 20 crew members Robert Breskal and Owen Coulls and radio operators Graham Gibbs and Gary White.

Marine Rescue NSW Commissioner Stacey Tannos congratulated the volunteers for the international recognition of their skill, professionalism and courage in hazardous conditions. “These nine volunteers have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to the Marine Rescue NSW mission of saving lives on the water, working seamlessly to save these boaters from grave danger,” he said.

The MR Port Macquarie radio base received a Mayday call from the stricken cruiser at 1.07am on April 14 but the location given by the caller – later found to have sustained a broken jaw – was difficult to determine.

“As the radio operators persisted in their attempts to gain accurate coordinates for the vessel’s location, the rescue crew searched under darkness to locate the boat to rescue the injured trio on board. After searching north from Port Macquarie, the crew eventually located the damaged cruiser with the assistance of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter just south of Crescent Head,” Commissioner Tannos said.

“Once on scene, two crew members bravely boarded the vessel to provide first aid to the men, whose injuries included broken bones, severe lacerations and punctured lungs. When the boat began sinking, they ensured the three men escaped safely, including one with a spinal injury trapped among debris below deck. All five men were rapidly retrieved from the open ocean by Port Macquarie 30 and transferred to shore, rendezvousing en route with Port Macquarie 20, which had taken NSW Ambulance paramedics on board. This emergency could well have ended in tragedy but the courage, determination and dedication of our volunteers throughout a six-hour mission ensured that three lives were saved.”

Commissioner Tannos said the international recognition of the crew was well deserved. “Our volunteers do not join our service for glory and awards but it is always pleasing to see them acknowledged. They devote a great deal of time and effort to their operational duties and training to ensure they can operate at the most professional of standards and they deserve our thanks and praise.”

Marine Rescue Port Macquarie has been congratulated after being named as a finalist for a prestigious international rescue award for a courageous overnight rescue mission to save three seriously injured men from a sinking motor cruiser.

The unit has been shortlisted as one of two finalists in the Outstanding Team Contribution to a Maritime Search and Rescue Operation category of the 2019 International Maritime Rescue Federation Awards, to be announced in London on September 10.

The nomination recognises the mission by nine volunteers to save the three men on board the 10m cruiser, holed when it struck a submerged object off Crescent Head in the early hours of April 14. The volunteers are: Port Macquarie 30 crew members Chris Condon, William Richardson, Reg McGlashan, Yolanda Bosschieter, Tony Hallett, Port Macquarie 20 crew members Robert Breskal and Owen Coulls and radio operators Graham Gibbs and Gary White.

Marine Rescue NSW Commissioner Stacey Tannos congratulated the volunteers for the international recognition of their skill, professionalism and courage in hazardous conditions. “These nine volunteers have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to the Marine Rescue NSW mission of saving lives on the water, working seamlessly to save these boaters from grave danger,” he said.

The MR Port Macquarie radio base received a Mayday call from the stricken cruiser at 1.07am on April 14 but the location given by the caller – later found to have sustained a broken jaw – was difficult to determine.

“As the radio operators persisted in their attempts to gain accurate coordinates for the vessel’s location, the rescue crew searched under darkness to locate the boat to rescue the injured trio on board. After searching north from Port Macquarie, the crew eventually located the damaged cruiser with the assistance of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter just south of Crescent Head,” Commissioner Tannos said.

“Once on scene, two crew members bravely boarded the vessel to provide first aid to the men, whose injuries included broken bones, severe lacerations and punctured lungs. When the boat began sinking, they ensured the three men escaped safely, including one with a spinal injury trapped among debris below deck.

“All five men were rapidly retrieved from the open ocean by Port Macquarie 30 and transferred to shore, rendezvousing en route with Port Macquarie 20, which had taken NSW Ambulance paramedics on board. This emergency could well have ended in tragedy but the courage, determination and dedication of our volunteers throughout a six-hour mission ensured that three lives were saved.”

Commissioner Tannos said the international recognition of the crew was well deserved. “Our volunteers do not join our service for glory and awards but it is always pleasing to see them acknowledged. They devote a great deal of time and effort to their operational duties and training to ensure they can operate at the most professional of standards and they deserve our thanks and praise.”