Botany Port Hacking Marine Rescue Unit looks to lower record rescue numbers this summer

After an ‘unwanted’ number of rescue missions and emergency operations this year, one of the busiest Marine Rescue crews in the state is looking towards summer with a single goal in mind.

One of the state’s busiest Marine Rescue units is looking towards summer with one goal in mind – less rescues and better boat safety.

It comes after the Botany Port Hacking Unit saved more than 840 people from southern Sydney waters since January 1 this year, with most incidents attributable to simple mistakes such as running out of fuel and engine failure.

Acting Deputy Commissioner Dan Duemmer said the team of 159 volunteers hoped to see a number of “unwanted records” decline across Botany Bay, Georges River, Cronulla, and Port Hacking.

“We found the numbers were extremely high last boating season, and those numbers came down primarily to people not doing the right preparation,” Mr Duemmer said.

“There were 367 search and rescue missions undertaken since January this year, that’s a staggering number, and 76 of those were actually emergency responses.

The Port Hacking Unit patrols waterways at Botany Bay, Georges River, Cronulla and Port Hacking. Picture: Marine Rescue NSW

“More than half of those missions were due to engine and battery failure or people simply running out of fuel … time and time again we see people not taking those small steps (to prepare) before they go boating, which ends up turning into a rescue or an emergency.”

The Botany Port Hacking team is the second busiest unit in the state with on-water capabilities, beaten only by Marine Rescue Lake Macquarie in the Hunter Region.

Mr Duemmer said the waters patrolled by the unit were accessible for a large number of Sydneysiders, leading to casual and experienced boaters often underestimating the local conditions.

“Be prepared, put the steps in place before you go boating, check your fuel, make sure your engine is serviced, make sure your battery is charged, and more importantly, check the weather when the weather changes,” he said.

“But be sure we’ll look after you, log on with Marine Rescue via our free app or via VHS channel 16 … it’s quick, it’s easy, and it may save your life one day.”

Marine Rescue Acting Deputy Commissioner Dan Duemmer and Botany Port Hacking Unit Commander Aaron Blackwell. Picture: Marine Rescue NSW

Although newly-appointed Unit Commander Aaron Blackwell said he “didn’t think he’d be doing this in a million years” after moving to Australia from Wales 20 years ago, the local father hoped to bring fresh leadership to the new role.

“One of the reasons I took on the role of Unit Commander is just the enthusiasm and dedication of all the volunteers. It is an unpaid, demanding role that people do, and for me, that’s what hooked me straight away,” he said.

Mr Blackwell said the biggest challenge for the unit was managing two different waterways, Botany Bay and Port Hacking, with 12.5m and 10m Naiad rescue vessels capable of going 55km offshore.

The unit has two Naiad rescue vessels which are capable of going up to 55km (30 nautical miles) offshore. Picture: Marine Rescue NSW

“Botany Bay has got lots of big container ships and is full of dangers, it [attracts] a very diverse boating community and goes to open sea quickly,” he said.

“And then you if you compare that to Port Hacking it’s very different in terms of shallow areas and lots of sand banks. So there’s a lot of different things you have to be familiar with on both waterways and we have two vessels because of that.

However, Mr Blackwell said the goal for the summer – to reduce rescue numbers – remained front-and-centre.

“If I can come out of this summer with not as many rescues because people are safe … to me that’s a success,” he said.