Four rescued in Derby

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority’s (AMSA) Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC Australia) coordinated the rescue of four fishermen from mangroves near Derby in Western Australia on Monday (Feb 10).

About 8.00pm (WST) on Sunday, RCC Australia detected an unregistered Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) with no associated location.

As the beacon was unregistered and no location was available, the RCC was unable to take action for nearly an hour until a subsequent signal placed the beacon about 18 nautical miles north of Derby.

It took a further two hours for police to confirm that an unattended car and trailer at a local boat ramp were associated with the EPIRB. It was then discovered that four men were overdue after going fishing in a small boat earlier in the day.

By the time the location and nature of distress was established severe weather, due to a tropical low and darkness, made it impossible to get any aircraft or vessels into the area. About 6.30am (WST) this morning a local helicopter was able to take advantage of a brief break in the weather to successfully locate and recover all four men.

AMSA said this incident highlights the importance of having a properly registered 406 MHz distress beacon.

A properly registered beacon would have allowed RCC Australia to contact the owner or their next of kin and develop a search area even without a location from the beacon.

In this case it is likely that it would have meant the difference between being rescued the day before, or having to spend 14 hours sheltering up mangrove trees in a crocodile habitat, as these men did.

A properly registered beacon means Search and Rescue officers will not only know where you are but who you are, what your vessel looks like and who to contact in an emergency.

Registering your beacon is free and gives you the best chance of being rescued if you get into trouble.

For more information or to register your beacon for free visit www.beacons.amsa.gov.au or call 1800 406 406.