Coastguard West Coast

My name is Mark Bolland and I am operational crew as well as the Safety Officer for Coastguard West Coast.

For the last 30 years I have had a passion around water safety and supporting volunteers that provide help for others. We are a small team of volunteers with a magic boat which needs your help. We have had some amazing local support but due to the economic downturn we now need the wider support of New Zealand to help bring our volunteers and boat back across one of the most notorious and dangerous river bars in New Zealand.

I know what it’s like when the call goes up and you assemble at the boat with the smell of diesel in the air from a fishing boat that has just capsized on the bar, you turn into the Grey river and proceed to a mountain of water which has just taken one boat. Our immediate challenge is to safely cross the bar and set up a search pattern to find survivors. Nets, dead fish and an upturned boat remind you this is not an exercise, this is real, it’s risky and you are the hope that families cling to bring their loved ones back. Our volunteers have a sense of responsibility to train and crew the boat but they need more support to keep the boat safe and operational.

Coastguard West Coast doesn’t have huge resources but it has a big responsibility which needs your support. Support us and let our volunteers focus on saving someone’s life.

The Grey river mouth is protected by a large sandbar, Greymouth bar, which is a notorious danger to shipping. A series of deaths in the 1980’s, prompted a group of local people to form Coastguard West Coast. The Unit continues to the present day, but we need your help – to have the right rescue vessel, trained crew and appropriate equipment. Our challenge is a dangerous river bar, West Coast isolation and raising much needed funds, we need your generous help, to help us, help you and your loved ones. We gratefully acknowledge the generosity of the local community but due to an economic downturn fundraising becomes increasingly difficult and we are now turning to the wider New Zealand community for support.

We are fortunate that with the support of Auckland Coastguard we now have in Greymouth a purpose built rescue vessel that will serve recreational and commercial boating users. The new to us vessel Ivan Talley Rescue was formerly Lion Foundation Rescue that served Auckland Coastguard well for over 10 years assisting and saving many lives within the Auckland area. It is fitting that as Auckland Coastguard’s Sister Unit we are proud to now have the opportunity to own the vessel that has served Auckland Coastguard so well.

In many ways we are unique as at the Talley Marine rescue base we also have Kotuku Surf Lifesaving and Greymouth Land Search and Rescue. Several members of Kotuku Surf Lifesaving are also active members of Coastguard West Coast.

Our members fully support Coastguard New Zealand and we have had several members serve on the Coastguard Southern Region Board – we presently have a crew member on the Coastguard New Zealand National Board. Two of our crew have been awarded Coastguard New Zealand Volunteer of the year in 2011 and 2013.

Some statistics - In 2013 the Lady Anna became the 45th boat to be wrecked off the Greymouth bar, and the skipper’s death brought the drowning toll to 17.

In 2000 the Koromiko fell victim, an eyewitness said “a wave just picked the arse of the boat and tipped it on its side”, two visiting fishermen died.

In April 2009, the Venture ran aground on the Blaketown beach, but this time the three crew jumped as it hit the shore and survived.

The first recorded shipwreck was the Gipsy in 1863, which was run on to the beach, all passengers disembarked safely.

A total of 231 lives have been lost in, en route, or from West Coast ports over the years. The worst was in 1872, when the Magnet sank on the way from Melbourne to Greymouth. Eight children were among the dead.