Coastguard are appealing to the New Zealand public for donations to help them continue their life-saving efforts in providing professional marine and rescue services.
Every year, nearly 7,000 New Zealanders – 19 a day on average – are brought home safely from our seas, lakes and rivers after an emergency.
This prevents 18,000 children from losing their mum or dad, 11,000 grandparents from losing their grandchildren and 1.6 million of us from losing someone we know.
And it’s all made possible by Kiwi institution Coastguard New Zealand, a charity run by over 2,000 volunteers all dedicated to saving lives, and families, on the water – a place where things can go very wrong, very quickly.
The Coastguard appeal will be on from 15 – 28 October so that they can continue providing professional marine and rescue services 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days of the year.
Patrick Holmes, CEO of Coastguard NZ, says: “Coastguard volunteers give over 300,000 hours of their free time every year to make sure Kiwis can enjoy New Zealand’s magnificent waterways, secure in the knowledge that should anything go wrong, someone highly organised, trained and equipped will be there to help.
“Our volunteers will spring to the assistance of anyone in trouble – from a boat not starting or helping a kayaker or surfer in difficulty, to rescuing a man overboard, responding to an emergency flare, locating a drifting vessel or attending to a medical emergency at sea.
“October is the time when Kiwis get back on the water and we want everyone to know we’re their best mate – and not be scared to call us. At the end of the day, we don’t just save lives, we save families.”
