Busy weekend for Marine Rescue

Central Coast Marine Rescue Base at Point Clare had a busy long weekend with a number of boaties needing assistance in the Peninsula area.

Around 9:45am on Saturday, October 5, the volunteer duty operator received a phone call from a woman seeking help for her handicapped nephew who was out alone in his small motorised runabout.

She explained that he was stranded on a sandbank between Saratoga and Paddys Channel and had a problem communicating.

Rescue vessel Central Coast 021 located the vessel and was able to navigate into the shallow water and move both boat and passenger to deeper water, where the nephew was transferred to another rescue vessel, Central Coast 020.

Both the man and his boat were taken to a private jetty at Saratoga where they were met by a grateful aunt and uncle.

On Saturday afternoon, about 4:30pm, a young couple on board a six-metre half cabin called for assistance.

Their vessel had an engine failure and they asked for help to get back to the ramp at Lions Park.

Central Coast 020 skippered by Terry Reynolds was tasked to assist and quickly completed the job.

On Sunday, October 6, the Point Clare radio room received a call from the skipper of a four metre runabout with engine failure between Noonan's Point and Paddys Channel.

The vessel, with three men on board, was towed to safety at the Gosford ramp.

At about 4:05pm on Sunday, Central Coast 020 was sent to location between Kourong Gourong Point and Half-tide Rocks to assist an 11.3m 'Bavarian' yacht with engine

failure.

The two on board had anchored the yacht but needed help to get back to Booker Bay for mechanical assistance.

The tow was tricky because of the run-out tide and strong gusty winds, but the crew on Central Coast 020 reported the job done safely.

On Monday, October 7, the boat crew were training in Broken Bay aboard Central Coast 020 when, about 11am they were diverted to Patonga to assist an 8.6 metre cruiser with engine failure.

The owner of the cruiser requested that he and the boat be taken to Empire Bay Marina for repairs.

The tow was completed about two and a half hours later to the relief of the hungry boat crew.

Media release, 8 Oct 2013

Ron Cole, Central Coast Marine Rescue