Media Event: National Search And Rescue Award

National Search and Rescue Award Presented In Darwin

The 2010 National Search and Rescue Award was presented last night in Darwin as part of the 34th Annual Meeting of the National Search and Rescue Council.

The recipients of the 2010 Award are Bob Kent and David Dodge from Esperance, Western Australia.

Bob, the owner and pilot of Esperance Helitours Helicopters, and David, a local SES volunteer, assisted in the rescue of two people off the coast of Esperance in August 2009. The two men, a father and son, were thrown into the water approximately two kilometres offshore when a king wave destroyed their boat. Bob and David were tasked by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority's Rescue Coordination Centre to provide assistance.

The rescue was notable in that it was the first time the local SES had used flotation grenades which provided vital extra buoyancy to the two men in the water. Bob and David also removed their own clothing to support the survivors who were suffering from hypothermia.

Media opportunity:
Interviews and photographs with the award recipients and search and rescue officers.

Where:
Bicentennial Park (opposite Novotel Darwin Atrium)

When:
10am, Friday 15 October 2010

Media contact:
Carly Lusk
0458 714 570

SOURCE: AMSA