Queensland Boaties urged to maintain vessels ahead of peak season
Water Police are urging Far Northerners to ensure their boats are properly maintained, following multiple incidents over the past few days.
With the wet season ending, locals can expect more boats on the water with near-perfect conditions expected to continue.
At 6pm on June 4, officers received reports of a jet ski taking on water in the Trinity Inlet.
The owner used a marine radio to call for help, and was assisted to shore before police arrived, and was able to recover the vessel before it sank.
Around 9pm that night, police received reports of two men in a 6.7 metre vessel which had broken down in the vicinity of the Jorgensen Patch diving site, about 50 kilometres north-east of Cairns.
Volunteers from Cairns Coast Guard attended and towed the vessel back to safety.
Just before 3am this morning, June 5, Water Police responded to a 7-metre vessel carrying 5 passengers which had broken down north of Fitzroy Island.
At around 10am, a vessel at Ellison Reef near Mission Beach requested assistance after breaking down.
As first responders were preparing to travel to the vessel, the crew advised they were able to start the engine and were returning to Kurramine Beach.
While travelling to the location, officers were advised the vessel had managed to start and the crew was returning to Cairns.
Water Police would like to remind the public to ensure their vessels are operational and carry the correct safety equipment.
• Maintain your vessel to a high standard or enlist someone to do it for you.
• Have the correct safety equipment in serviceable condition.
• Have an operating marine radio and know how to use it in an emergency.
• Know how to read a GPS correctly so that you can advise rescue authorities of your location using GPS coordinates.
• Tell someone where you are going and when you are returning in case something goes wrong, this way Water Police will then know where to start looking. This means telling family or friends, a local Volunteer Marine Rescue group or Coast Guard where you will be on the water, before you head off and update them if things change.
• Check the forecast weather, a bright sunny morning could change over the course of the day.
