Joining a regular volunteer crew of four, plus two trainees, and Coastguard NZ’s communications Manager Kimberley Waters, Newstalk ZB’s Tyler Adams and I spent several hours on the bridge of Trillian Trust Rescue (TTR) watching, talking and listening to the crew in action.
The 15.5m monohull with an inflatable collar was purpose-built for Auckland Coastguard. Powered by twin 700hp engines, TTR is propeller-driven, has a maximum speed of 33 knots, and features a comprehensive galley and sleeping facilities for the crew (minimum crew of four). Like the other two vessels in Auckland Coastguard’s fleet – the 14.95m foil-assisted catamaran Lion Foundation Rescue and 9m Protector RIB Trillian Rescue Alpha, she boasts premium navigation and communications equipment with redundancy built in to all her major systems.
We left from Auckland Coastguard’s base in Mechanics Bay on a call out to a vessel stranded off Waiheke Island, unable to start its engine – a common occurrence. Coastguard’s mission is to provide the boating community with assistance on the water whenever it’s needed, 24-7, in all weathers.
Assistance rendered might include expert help with mechanical or electrical problems, fuel issues, damage to propellers and hulls, freeing stuck anchors, pumping out water, rescuing crews, groundings, collisions, boats sinking, picking up exhausted paddle-boarders, kayakers and skiff sailors, plucking people from the water and much more. Every callout is different.
The volunteer organisation is committed to help all New Zealand boaties in an emergency, but Coastguard members enjoy special privileges (see website: www.coastguard.nz).
Once we located the vessel in trouble – an inboard-powered Rayglass anchored well offshore – our rescue was relatively straightforward. TTR drew alongside the anchored vessel and transferred aboard a Coastguard crew member with marine electrical experience to try and resolve the starting problem. After some effort he was ultimately unsuccessful getting the vessel to start, so a tow line was passed aboard and secured. The Coastguard crew came back aboard TTR, the stricken vessel weighed anchor, and we began the tow back to Oram’s Drystack in Westhaven, slowly at first, but once everyone was happy, the speed was increased.
With 1,400hp on tap and reasonable sea conditions, TTR was able to tow the Rayglass at 19 knots, making the journey back to Westhaven a relatively quick one.
The vessel and its grateful crew were handed over to staff at Orams Drystack who returned it to its dry berth to await repairs. The whole operation had been highly efficient, safe and professional – a credit to the crew and Coastguard procedures.
Fortunately, the vessel’s owner was a Coastguard member, so for him the tow was free – one of the benefits of membership. To become a Coastguard member costs just $150 a year, but non-members pay a towing fee of $350 per hour. Worth thinking about, eh?
