Surf lifesavers honoured for rescuing yacht crew off Ettalong Beach

by Sail-World Cruising on 12 Feb 2010 All leisure sailors, who today depend for their safety on their EPIRBs, satellite tracking and sophisticated network of volunteer coastguards in fast speedboats, may not remember that, 50 years ago, it could be a local surf lifesaver who came to your aid, rowing a wooden lifeboat, as happened to four sailors on a yacht in 1960.

This week five ex-lifesavers from the New South Wales Central Coast gathered to be honoured - once again - for their role in one of the major rescues in surf lifesaving history.

IT was half a century ago, but the night of February 1, 1960, is one the men will never forget, and were happy to talk about it to Terry Collins of the http://express-advocate-wyong.whereilive.com.au!Central_Coast_Express_Advocate this week.

Maurie Hayes, John Miles, Peter McAsh, Winston Riley and Stan Rogerson, then aged between 16 and 22, were summoned about midnight to report to Ocean Beach Surf Life Saving Club.

`We all received phone calls in the middle of the night and were young enough then to just get up and go,’ Mr Miles, of Killcare, said. Little did the five men know they were about to effect one of the major rescues in Australia's surf lifesaving history.

`They probably called us because our families were among the few with phones back then,’ Mr Rogerson, of Umina Beach, said.

The yacht Thetis, with four men aboard, had run aground off Ettalong Beach and was being pummelled by waves whipped up by strong southerly winds. The five young men set off in a small wooden lifeboat, trying to negotiate their way to the yacht with minimum lighting provided by the headlights of police vehicles on the shore.

`The boats then were very similar to those used today but with no refinements,’’ Mr McAsh, of North Avoca, said,`We had no navigation lights.’ The men took 40 minutes to row less than 300 metres.

`We couldn’t see the waves breaking but we could hear them,’’ Mr Hayes, of Umina Beach, said.

`Our major concern was how we would get the four men off the yacht in the heavy seas,’ Mr Riley said,`The yacht was pitching but in the end it wasn’ t hard to get them off once we reached them.'

`We didn’t think of the danger to ourselves then,’ Mr Miles said,`But some things stick in your memory.’

They were originally awarded a meritorious award by Surf Life Saving for rescuing the crew of a stricken yacht, but they were honoured again on Sunday at a special afternoon tea at Avoca Beach surf club to mark the 50th anniversary of the rescue.

`This was the major rescue ever carried out by this club and one of the key rescues statewide,’ educaton director Richard Grimmond said.

A surf boat set off a flare at the site of the rescue as the men and their families looked on from the club balcony. It was the first time they had all been together in more than 20 years. Each man received a plaque marking the occasion.