News & Media

Members of Marine Rescue Nambucca transfer a “victim” from a simulated boat crash to an SES vessel during a joint training exercise on the Macksville River.

The residents of Macksville awoke last Sunday morning (May 20) not only to beautiful weather but also a river full of activity.

The Macksville Bridge was the centre of attention for local emergency services taking part in joint training exercises, including Marine Rescue Nambucca, the NSW Police Force, NSW Ambulance Service, Rural Fire Service, Fire and Rescue NSW and State Emergency Service.

The event was organised by Tony Jarrett from the RFS, with the co-operation of the leaders of all the local emergency services. Regional representatives from each agency also were involved.

The first exercise scenario involved a party boat, possibly with 10 people on board, crashing into the Northern pylon of the bridge. The day’s activities began with a Police phone call to Marine Rescue to report the accident and casualties in the water.

The MR Nambucca boat crews responded and quickly determined that the number of injured and missing people meant additional resources would be needed for the search and rescue operation.

The SES assisted with boats and crews and NSW Ambulance and fire crews dealt with the transported casualties on shore. The local Police were responsible for the overall co-ordination of resources.

After this exercise was completed, a quick debrief was held before a call from the Police signalled the start of the day’s second exercise. This time, a vessel with eight to 10 people aboard had collided with the Railway Bridge and burst into flames, with fuel and oil possibly leaking into the river.

Vessels from Marine Rescue Nambucca and the SES transported these casualties, many of whom were suffering burns, back to the North Macksville boat ramp for medical attention. Fire crews were then transported to the bridge by water to extinguish the fire and contain any oil or fuel spill.

The NSW Police Force Marine Area Command oversaw the exercises and acted as umpire. Safety was paramount on the day and all agencies learnt valuable lessons from their involvement.

The whole exercise was rated a huge success. with agencies already discussing the next joint training operation.