Editorial: Pair must help pay for their rescue

The two brothers who sparked a major search and rescue operation on Sunday will be asked to contribute to Coastguard's $3000 bill.

And rightly so.

These two young men, aged 15 and 20, set out on their boat at 5pm on Saturday so poorly prepared that Murray Whitehead of Western Bay Coastguard said they broke every boating rule in the book.

They had no local knowledge, they had old flares that they didn't know how to use, no VHF radio and no GPS. They had lifejackets but one was so old that it didn't have any straps. And they hadn't told anyone of their plans.

After a night at South East Bay on Mayor Island, the boys headed home but ran out of fuel.

The boys' family phoned Coastguard, who spent the next two hours searching for the pair.

Coastguard relies on volunteers who generously donate their time and they receive no Government funding.

They provide a valuable service to sea users but this service should be saved for real emergencies and not ill-prepared, irresponsible young men who have no consideration for the consequences of their actions.

The pair had no idea where they were, leading Coastguard to search fruitlessly around Mayor Island when in fact they needed to be near Mauao.

Mr Whitehead says the callout cost them about $3000 and 260 man hours, and while the brothers will be asked to contribute, they can't be forced to pay.

This is so wrong. These careless men should be made to pay back the full amount - forfeiting their boat if necessary.

Funding for any volunteer organisation is tough enough to secure - let alone in a recession.

It is an offence to waste police time and those who do can be fined up to $2000 or jailed for three months.

Perhaps it is time the Government looked at a similar punishment for those who waste Coastguard's precious time and resources. Until there is clear deterrent for this sort of reckless behaviour, people will continue to take advantage of this essential service.