Rescue & Services

Marine Rescue NSW completes second busiest boating season ever

Published on: 10th May, 2024

Marine Rescue NSW’s 3,400 volunteers have completed their second busiest boating season on record with 3,242 search and rescue missions, including 921 emergency responses between October 1, 2023 and ANZAC Day this year.

Middle Harbour crew member Ben McKeown on Sydney Harbour

This season’s figure was just shy of the record 3,251 missions completed during the 2022/23 boating season.

Marine Rescue NSW Commissioner Alex Barrell said volunteer crews safely returned 7,535 boaters to shore during the 2023/24 boating season.

“It’s been another busy season for Marine Rescue NSW right across our 46 units.

“Unfortunately, we’ve seen an overrepresentation in mechanical failures with more than 40% of our responses related to engine failure.

“From our perspective, these are avoidable and we’re again urging boaters to make sure before they head out on the water, they check their engine.

“It is important that you check your equipment because unfortunately, if things do go wrong, you could find yourself in a life threatening situation,” he said.

Marine Rescue Lake Macquarie was the busiest unit in NSW with 441 search and rescue missions while three of Marine Rescue NSW’s six regions, Mid North Coast, Illawarra and Monaro had their busiest boating seasons on record.

Volunteers in the Monaro region’s eight units saw a 16% increase in search and rescue missions on the previous boating season, responses were up 11% on the Mid North Coast while Illawarra crews experienced a 7% increase in demand.

Log Ons remained steady with just over 45,000 boaters using the free Marine Rescue app or VHF channel 16 to notify Marine Rescue NSW of their voyage.

“Logging On saves vital time in the event of an emergency and ensures our volunteers keep watch for a vessel’s safe return.

“It a boater doesn’t return from their voyage as planned, a search will be initiated,” Commissioner Barrell said.

Marine Rescue NSW radio operators managed 144,806 radio calls over the season with a large portion answered by the Marine Rescue Sydney State Communications Centre at Belrose.

69 of those calls were MAYDAYs where lives were in imminent danger while 42 PAN PANs were received from boaters in an urgent but non-life threatening situation.

Commissioner Barrell praised the work of volunteers across the Service’s 46 units who played an important role of keeping boaters in NSW safe.

“I want to commend all Marine Rescue NSW volunteers for their thousands of hours of dedicated service to keeping our coastline and waterways as safe as possible.

“While the official boating season is over, we know it is a year-round activity and we are reminding boaters who plan on heading out of the water, particularly over these colder months that you’ve got the right safety equipment for your trip and that you’ve logged on with your local Marine Rescue NSW base.

“Importantly, an added safety message during the winter months is to make sure that you’ve got additional warm clothing when you go out boating,” he said.

Of all activities undertaken during the season’s 3,242 rescue missions, 44% involved boaters either cruising or fishing while Marine Rescue NSW crews responded to 125 capsized vessels.

“It is vitally important that everyone on board is wearing a lifejacket and if your boat overturns please stay with your vessel,” Commissioner Barrell said.

Marine Rescue NSW 2023/24 boating season search & rescue missions by region:

NORTHERN RIVERS – 162 search and rescue missions including 92 emergency responses with 296 people safely returned to shore across all 7 Northern Rivers units – Point Danger, Brunswick, Cape Byron, Ballina, Evans Head, Iluka Yamba & Wooli.