By Peter de Graaf They've rescued hundreds of boaties, plucked stranded divers off rocks, and saved ferry passengers from drowning - but now Coastguard Bay of Islands is putting its hand up for help.
The group is volunteer-run and gets no Government funding, but is on call 24 hours a day and gets called out on average 60 times a year.
It was set up in 1997 - until then Russell Radio called on the closest boat if someone was in trouble - and bought an 8.5-metre converted pleasure boat called Bay Rescue two years later.
But eight years is a long time for a boat that's sent out into the worst possible seas, and this one is showing its age. It has new outboards, but needs new tubes and its superstructure is cracking. It has an estimated two years of life left as a rescue boat.
So now Coastguard Bay of Islands is appealing to the public to help pay for a bigger, faster, custom-built replacement.
President Murray Jeffs, a retired farmer from Pakaraka, said Coastguard members had spent the past few years drawing up their ideal boat.
Bay Rescue II would be just over 11m - "8.5m is stretching it when you go out in the real lumpy stuff, especially when you need to tow a big boat in" - and be driven by jets so it can get into shallow water. It would also have a loo, cooker and space for a stretcher.
Coastguard members reckon it would cost $800,000, or $1 million to allow for inflation and unexpected costs.
"Rescue boats are bloody expensive for what they are ... But everything has to be built to the standards of a commercial vessel," Mr Jeffs said.
Coastguard Bay of Islands' roughly 60 call-outs a year range from helping boaties with a flat battery to pulling people out of the water after a sinking.
They were out all night for last month's Coastal Classic when a yacht capsized; their most memorable rescues include a ferry which ran onto rocks near Cape Brett in 2004, and a night-time search for an 82-year-old Paihia diver in March this year.
Treasurer Kelvin Petrie said a many Northlanders go boating - that's why most choose to live here.
"About 60 of them need help a year - and next time it might be you."
Coastguard Bay of Islands is also applying to community and gaming trusts, and hopes for support from businesses and out-of-town boaties who frequent the Bay of Islands.
Call Murray Jeffs on (09) 405-9873 or (021) 0275-1796; or Kelvin Petrie on (09) 407-9097 or (0274) 941-896.
Meanwhile, Whangarei Coastguard wants volunteers to be radio operators.
The marine VHF channel looks after the safety of boaties within the Whangarei region - from Bream Head to Mangawhai Heads out to the Mokohinau Islands and including the Hen and Chicken Islands.
Radio operator and Whangarei Coastguard member Joan Livingstone said operators recorded boaties' trip plans, how many people were onboard and when they intended to return.
"It's really important information because if we suspect something untoward has happened we can contact police and get a search underway as quickly as possible," Mrs Livingstone said.
Volunteers are trained on radio use. Anyone who can lend a hand should email joansand@igrin.co.nz
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