Stand Out Coastguard Volunteers Honoured At Annual Awards
The extraordinary efforts of Coastguard volunteers going above and beyond to keep Kiwis safe on the water over the past 12 months, was been recognised at the 2011 National Coastguard Awards last night in Nelson.
Five awards were presented to individual volunteers and Coastguard units in recognition of their outstanding service to the organisation. A special award was also presented to the Coastguard Canterbury, Sumner Lifeboat, Waimakariri Ashley, Coastguard Air Patrol and Kaikoura units for their valuable and heroic work with the earthquake recovery.
This year’s recipients worthy of commendation included Coastguard Waiheke Island helping to bring a crew home safely whose vessel had struck rocks in extremely rough seas and a volunteer’s 14-year tenure with Coastguard seeing him play an instrumental role in the impressive uptake in new recruits and reigniting the Unit’s passion for what they do.
Another winner’s commitment and desire to upskilling fellow crew members was worthy of honourable mention as was another going beyond the call of duty in the rescue of a two men aboard a sinking tug. Another volunteer was recognised for their hard work in driving the updating of the Communication’s Hub for his Unit which will soon be trialled throughout the Eastern Region.
Coastguard New Zealand President, Colin Small says, “Without the tireless dedication of our valuable volunteers, we wouldn’t be able to continue the work we do to keep New Zealander’s safe on our waters and bring them home when they’re in strife.
“We are pleased to be able to honour those exceptional individuals who make it all possible with these awards and recognise the commitment they show to Coastguard day after day without asking for anything in return.”
Coastguard is New Zealand’s primary provider of marine search and rescue services. It is made up of highly-trained volunteers who put themselves in harm’s way on a regular basis to ensure the safety of people at sea. This year 2,224 brave volunteers brought 6,996 Kiwis safely back to land and devoted a significant 348,346 hours to keeping New Zealander’s safe on the water.
“This year’s award winners have all shown outstanding service to Coastguard and their local boating communities, and our sincere thanks goes out to those volunteers for their commitment to saving lives at sea,” says Small.
There are six categories for the awards –
TracPlus Volunteer of the Year Doug Griffin Coastguard West Coast
Rescue of the Year Coastguard Waiheke Island
Operational Volunteer of the Year Stephen Clews Coastguard Whakatane
Chevron Air Patrol Volunteer of the Year Warren Dooney Coastguard Auckland Air Patrol
Chevron Rescue Vessel Volunteer of the Year Nelson Colyer Coastguard Canterbury
Special Commendation – Earthquake Recovery Coastguard Canterbury Sumner Lifeboat
Waimakariri Ashley Canterbury Air Patrol
Kaikoura
The individual award recipients each receive a prize that assists in furthering their education, and professional development, within Coastguard.
Winners:
Coastguard Waiheke Island – Rescue of the Year - In January this year, Coastguard Waiheke Island was called out to a vessel which had struck some rocks at Motorua Island in the Coromandel. The crew had already been out on the water for four hours attending other calls but raced out to assist the stricken boat which wasn’t coping well in the rough seas. The crew managed to convince the men to stay onboard despite their intention to jump into a small inflatable which could have proved fatal. Waiheke Rescue then managed to get in close enough to get both men on board safely despite the waves pounding the foundering vessel during the rescue.
Doug Griffin, Volunteer of the Year – Doug’s strong social and community spirit has been clear during his 14 year tenure at Coastguard. His passion and organizational skills have lead to him the Unit’s only Skipper while also acting as the Training Officer. As the only member of the unit holding a Certificate of Competency qualification, Doug turns out for every rescue, on water training activity and SAREX.
Stephen Clews, Operational Volunteer of the Year – Stephen Clews from Coastguard Whakatane was recognised for his work with the Unit’s technical projects. He played a key role in the radio communications upgrade and new vessel research and development. Stephen is also a Senior Master actively involved in marine search and rescue. At a Regional level, his input into the Centralised Radio Communications Hub proof of concept has been greatly appreciated.
Warren Dooney, Air Patrol Volunteer of the Year – Warren Dooney received the Air Patrol Volunteer of the Year for performing well above expectations. Warren has made training and volunteer recruitment a priority for the Unit this year which has been extremely successful and all of his dedication and groundwork will hold the Unit in good stead.
Nelson Colyer, Rescue Vessel Volunteer of the Year – Nelson played a pivotal role in the successful rescue of the tug 'Rakanui' in April this year. He selflessly took control of the foundering vessel which was at risk of sinking, taking ownership of the salvage pump from the exhausted crew member and helping to bring the water levels to a manageable level. Both men and the vessel were brought back to shore safely thanks to Nelson overseeing the long arduous journey.
Coastguard Canterbury, Special Commendation – Coastguard’s Canterbury, Sumner Lifeboat, Waimakariri Ashley, Coastguard Air Patrol and Kaikoura units showed dedication beyond the call of duty when it came to assisting those in need after the region’s two devastating earthquakes. Volunteers from many of the units worked tirelessly together and their professionalism resulted in many commendations from other agencies who had been impressed with their efforts. The training that Coastguard employed at this time proved invaluable with Civil Defence adopting many of their processes as good practice. During this period, Coastguard personnel from many units gave over 5000 hours of service.