About the Marine Rescue NSW Port Macquarie Unit
Marine Rescue NSW is our State’s official volunteer marine rescue service, committed to saving lives on the water. Safety on the water is our highest priority – for both our volunteers and the boating public. Port Macquarie is one of 46 Units operating along the NSW coast. The Port Macquarie Unit started life as Sea Rescue and has been serving the local area since 1971.
In 2009 the State Government decided to amalgamate the three organisations providing marine rescue services into a single official designated “Emergency Service”. Volunteer Marine Rescue NSW officially took to the water on New Year’s day 2010.
We are not a Government agency but a community owned and focused organisation. The majority of our annual running costs are funded from local fund raising efforts. We have to provide 20% of the cost of a new boat. Volunteers are the great strength of Marine Rescue NSW Port Macquarie Unit.
All Boat and Radio base volunteers are professionally trained to strict standards and accredited by the peak NSW rescue authority, the State Rescue Board. They are required to undergo continual training to maintain skill levels.
Our boat crew are on roster for 24 hours a day for 7 days at a time. Our radio base is manned 24 hours a day every day of the year. Port Macquarie Unit is a designated SARCC (Search and Rescue Co-ordination Centre).
Our members work with other emergency services in major disasters. We assist NSW Parks and Wildlife in whale disentanglement events in our area. MRNSW members provide a number of vital safety services to the NSW boating community:
– Swift, coordinated marine emergency response
– Boating safety education and marine licence course for local boaters
– Continuous radio coverage along the coastline
Our boats are fitted with state-of-the-art navigation, electronics, communication and first aid equipment, including lifesaving automatic defibrillators and oxygen therapy.
Whenever you’re heading out on the water, make sure you use your marine radio to log on with your local MRNSW Port Macquarie Unit so someone responsible is keeping watch for you. If you don’t log off when you’re due back, our members will swing into action to find you.
Interested in joining Marine Rescue? Call our recruitment officer on 0428 625 292. We welcome new crew, new radio operators and new fund raisers.
