Marine Rescue volunteers at Forster have life saving day

by Ken McManus on 9 Jul 2013 On Saturday,two members of Marine Rescue Forster Tuncurry have been commended for helping save the life of a fisherman in a medical emergency .

Unit Commander Dennis Travers said Watch Officer Grant Maxwell had been on duty in the unit’s radio base on the Forster breakwall about 9am on Saturday when he received a garbled radio call that he had been unable to understand.

'He then noticed a boat returning across the bar at the entrance to Cape Hawke Harbour at great speed and a short time later, a man arrived at the base asking if Grant could take a defibrillator down to the boat ramp,' he said.

'Grant grabbed the defibrillator from the unit’s reception area and hurried to the nearby Forster Boat Harbour ramp a couple of hundred metres away.

'When he arrived he found another Forster Tuncurry member, Milton Shaw, performing CPR on a man from the boat that he had seen rushing in from sea.

'Milton and Grant connected the defibrillator and applied one shock before re-starting CPR on the man.

'NSW Ambulance and Fire and Rescue crews arrived and transferred the man to Manning Base Hospital. We understand he had suffered heart damage.

'We don’t think this was the type of day the gentleman and his two friends had planned when they left to go fishing off shore.

'The use of the defibrillator saved the man’s life. This was a great result, thanks to the efforts of Milton and Grant.'

MRNSW Commissioner Stacey Tannos commended the two volunteers for their swift, calm response to a serious medical emergency.

'Grant and Milton have demonstrated the value of our members’ comprehensive first aid training and the life-saving impact of defibrillator units.

'These two volunteers are a credit to their unit and our organisation and deserve our thanks and congratulations for their ability and the assistance they provided in a life-threatening emergency.'