Coastguard celebrates highest-ever number of volunteer hours

Coastguard New Zealand is pleased to announce a record number of volunteer hours as it celebrates New Zealand Volunteer Awareness Week.

In the past year, more than 2,100 professional volunteers dedicated more than 330,000 hours of their time to educate, protect and help save lives at sea as part of New Zealand’s primary maritime search and rescue service.

These statistics has been reflected by a busy time on the water, with two major incidents occurring within days of each other in Northland and Kaikoura last week.

The crew of an ocean-going tug boat was picked up by Coastguard units from Whangarei and Kawau after their vessel caught fire on Wednesday morning. This was followed two days later by an incident in which four people had to be rescued by the local Coastguard unit after their yacht collided with a whale off the Kaikoura coast.

Coastguard New Zealand CEO Bruce Reid says, “These two incidents truly highlight the vulnerability all New Zealanders face when they head offshore and reinforces the need for a skilled emergency response on the water, supported by our people on the radios and in the air.

“Coastguard New Zealand is extremely grateful to all those who have contributed to the total number of volunteer hours by donating their time to enhancing the safety of all New Zealanders and saving lives at sea. The whole community benefits from the work of volunteers and we’re thrilled to be able to extend our recognition to those individuals this week.”

Earlier this month, long-serving Coastguard Taupo volunteer John Bates was recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for his 14 years of service to search and rescue on the waterways of the Taupo region.

And while Coastguard honours its own brave heroes at its annual national conference and Awards dinner, it is important to recognise and appreciate all volunteers during Volunteer Awareness Week. New Zealand is a better place due to the generosity of all New Zealanders who volunteer their time, says Reid.

“Our community promise is saving lives at sea and this can only be achieved with the help of our 2,100 Coastguard volunteers and the local community support they receive. We hope to continue to grow our volunteer base and increase our capability to keep all New Zealanders safe on the water.”

To learn more about how time and money can assist Coastguard visit www.coastguard.co.nz.

ENDS

© Scoop Media