Newsletter for the Rotary Club of Greater Geraldton - Issue No.: 782 Issue Date: 29 Apr, 2024

Ian Beard was introduced by Grant Woodhams

Ian grew up in the Perth suburb of Manning, became a motor mechanic and married in 1972. He spent time in Port Hedland and Dampier working as a Navaids technician. He has worked for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority and subsequently ran his own water treatment business designing purification equipment for mining and domestic use.

Ian retired to Geraldton in 2007 and joined the Geraldton VMR as a shore based radio operator. He now serves as their Communications and Public Relations Officer and has recently been appointed Communications Officer for the state body. He has a keen interest in the application of new technology in the field of radio communications to marine rescue.

Geraldton Volunteer Marine Rescue Group

The late 1960s and early 70s saw a boom in recreational boating. Unfortunately, this also saw an increase in boating related tragedies.

In the mid-1970s a group of boat owners in the Mandurah Area clubbed together and formed Mandurah Water Rescue, this was the first of many volunteer marine rescue groups around the coast of Western Australia. Currently, the number stands at thirty-nine and includes groups on Christmas Island and the Cocos-Keeling group.

These groups initially operated independently on an ad hoc basis until 2002 when the majority joined up under the umbrella of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services. At present thirty-seven operate under these arrangements and negotiations are presently underway to bring in the remaining two.

The Geraldton Volunteer Marine Rescue Group was initially formed in 1988 as part of the Geraldton/Greenough State Emergency Service.

At first, monthly meetings and coastal radio watch monitoring was conducted from the S.E.S. offices which were then located on Chapman Rd.

In 1990 the group was relocated to the Bill Sewell Centre, its headquarters occupying what was once a cell in the old Geraldton Gaol.

The location was far from ideal, radio reception was very poor and it was difficult to work out of.

This was tragically highlighted on the 3rd September 1990 when a father aged forty-three and his two sons aged seventeen and fourteen lost their lives after getting into difficulty at African Reef. Their radio calls could not be received at the marine rescue base.
This led to a review of rescue operations which resulted in a radio shack being erected over the toilet block at Point Moore Beach, reaching completion in March 1994.

A further extension was built in 2001 and this has served us up to this time.

As the group grew in numbers the facility became too small and seven years ago moves were commenced to expand.

In the middle of 2015 a Royalties for Regions grant was obtained which has allowed a major extension and renovations to be being carried out. This will bring the building up to current standards and includes disabled access and improved areas for training and administration.

Geraldton Volunteer Marine Rescue Group’s area of operations cover the coast from Flat Rocks in the South to Horrocks in the North and extend out to cover the Abrolhos islands.

Volunteer marine rescue in W.A. is manned totally by volunteers although we come under the general umbrella of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services. Under this arrangement a large proportion of operational funding is received. This has allowed group members to get on with their core business rather than spending large amounts of time fundraising and cooking sausages.

As with most volunteer organisations the majority of our personnel are well on in years although in recent times we have had some excellent younger members come aboard.

Volunteers receive training in the two main spheres of our operation, Onshore Radio Operator and Rescue Boat Crew. All volunteers can follow a pathway that ultimately leads to being a fully accredited Rescue Skipper.

The W.A. Police Service acts as the Hazard Management Authority with the Water Police Branch in Fremantle coordinating rescue and recovery operations.

Our primary rescue vessel is a 10 metre Naiad in rigid inflatable, the “Nashira”. This is a New Zealand design, built in Western Australia by Kirby Marine. It is fitted with twin 300 hp outboard engines and is capable of a top speed of 50 knots. With a full suite of electronics, including a forward looking infrared camera, it is ideally suited for most of the incidents that we attend.

High speed Nashira rescue boat