The strength and might of the Illawarra's ocean rescue crews have powered into Shellharbour.
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When lives are at risk during emergencies on the open water, a team of highly-trained people are there to help.
NSW Police Marine Command officers and volunteers from Marine Rescue NSW and surf lifesavers team up to search, rescue and retrieve those who get in trouble.
Ahead of their biennial joint training session on Saturday, May 25, a flotilla of 11 Marine Rescue NSW vessels gathered off Bass Point on Friday afternoon and, in formation, they steered into Shellharbour.
It was the first time all seven Illawarra units have been together on the water in such a way.
"It's quite exciting to see them all there because there's such a vast array of vessels," Marine Rescue NSW Inspector Stuart Massey said.
"From the jet skis, the rescue watercraft, through to various size boats, 6.5 metre up to 10m, and then 11.5m and up to 13.7 m, which is the Jervis Bay boat. That's actually the largest vessel that Marine Rescue has on the east coast."
The reason behind the capability display is to put crews to the test across the weekend in search and rescue scenarios that mirror real-life incidents that have occurred in the past.
A record number of search and rescue missions were completed by Marine Rescue NSW crews during 2023, with a number of close calls already this year that have put ocean rescue emergency crews to the test.
At 9am on Saturday water police, lifesavers and marine rescue crews will gather at Shell Cover Marina and head out onto the open water for the training scenarios.
Exactly what the scenarios are has been kept top secret from crews so that training is as real-life as possible.
Crews will be put to the test with vessels in trouble, people in the water and medical emergencies.
"We'll have different search areas," Insp Massey said. "We'll have targets [people needing rescuing] in the water that we'll be looking for.
"When we locate those people, they'll be in various [emergency] states, and our crews will have to react accordingly."
As the day progresses the emergency scenarios will develop and become more complex, with those needing rescuing in more dire straits.
"It's to hone everybody's skills for in the event of an emergency, the more we practice, the better we will be when we have to go and do it for real," Insp Massey said.
As crews undertake scenarios on the water, others will be put to the test in radio rooms and control centres on dry land to ensure these personnel are also being tested.
While the water-based activities will be too far out for the public to see, Insp Massey said the flotilla of boats can be viewed when they leave Shellharbour at 9am on Saturday.
"It's a great opportunity if people wanted to come down to either of the break walls because they, I will get them to go out in some form of formation," he said.