Rescue Stories

 
A Scare In The Surf

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Off Duty Surf Lifesaver to the Rescue as Boat Capsizes

Thanks to the heroic actions of quick-thinking surf lifesaver Jimmy Matthews, three lives in Victoria have been saved. Jimmy, a member of Apollo Bay Surf Life Saving Club in Victoria, was assessing the surf conditions along the Great Ocean Road in September 2008, when he noticed three people desperately struggling in the ocean.

They were part of a group of five who were thrown into the rough seas after a wave capsized their boat. By the time Jimmy arrived on the scene, two of the people had made it to shore while the other three continued to battle the strong surf.

“I noticed they were getting into trouble and it was a pretty solid swell,” Jimmy said. Without hesitation, Jimmy called 000 before swimming out three times to bring each frantic person back to safety. He then swam out again to retrieve the boat.

Jimmy’s brave actions prevented a devastating tragedy and his actions have been commended by Life Saving Victoria spokesman Guy Britt. “Jimmy was not only in the right place at the right time, he had the right skills to successfully carry out the rescue,” he praised.

 
Real Life Heroes: Waitress Rescues Swimmer

In between serving meals and coffee in North Cottesloe WA on a weekend in August last year, Victoria Coleclough managed to squeeze a lifesaving rescue into her shift.

When the waitress saw a man struggling in the water on Saturday afternoon, she ran down to the beach, ditched her apron and shoes, grabbed a rescue board and ran into the water.

“I was upstairs working on the balcony at Barchetta and two women I had been serving alerted me to the man caught in the rip,” the 18 year old said.

When Victoria arrived at the beach, the drowning man’s wife and children, who were tourists from England, were standing on the beach highly distressed knowing they could soon lose their husband and father right in front of their eyes.

With little time to think or hesitate, Victoria spotted a surf rescue board and sprinted towards the water with the board in hand. Ms Coleclough, who completed her Bronze Medallion at Cottesloe SLSC last year, said she realised rescuing the 37 year old man was becoming harder than she had originally anticipated.

“He was on the reef, there was a big swell and he was getting dumped,” she said.“He had been caught for about 10 minutes and was so exhausted that he was finding it hard to get out.” However, with strong persistence and the rescue techniques she had learned during the training in her bronze course, Victoria successfully maneuvered through the strong waves and managed to get to the man just in time.

“I pulled him into the shore and a doctor, who had been walking by, was there to help.” The rescued man was treated for hypothermia and shock and was taken to Fremantle Hospital where he recovered completely and was reunited with his grateful family.

Reflecting back on the rescue, Victoria said she didn’t have time to think about what she was doing. “It just came naturally. I didn’t notice how cold the water was, I had so much adrenalin,” she said.“Afterwards, it hit me and I was quite emotional about it. I had just saved

 
Rookie Surf Lifesaver Turned Hero

Someone cried, “can anyone do CPR?” Just hours before, 48 year old Barry Giles finished his Bronze Medallion, qualifying him as a volunteer surf lifesaver. Barry, his wife Caroline and other members of the Sunshine Beach Surf Life Saving Club were training off duty last November when they heard the urgent plea from the waters edge.

A boogie board rider was dragging young Filipino student John Santiago from the surf as Barry rushed toward them. Kneeling over John’s lifeless body, Barry found no sign of a pulse or breathing. His recent training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was fresh on his mind as Barry realised that this was a life and death test of his skills. Barry and fellow surf lifesaver Robyn Jenkinson immediately started CPR at the new compression rates of 30 compressions to two breaths.

After two or three agonizing minutes, Barry felt a faint pulse. John began spluttering – he was breathing again! As Barry and Robyn worked on John, Caroline was racing to the scene with an oxy viva kit while Robyn’s husband Paul was collecting the rescue vehicle in case John had to be moved quickly. The paramedics arrived, administered oxygen to John and transferred him to ICU where, thanks to Barry, Caroline and their friends, he made a complete recovery.

Barry – this rookie surf lifesaver turned hero – couldn’t even swim when he moved from the UK to Australia 16 years ago. The swimming component was the toughest part of the Bronze Medallion certification process for him. Clearly, he is up to the challenge of being a surf lifesaver.

Today, Barry and Caroline Giles say that Surf Life Saving is the best thing that’s happened to them since moving from Brisbane to Noosa 3 years ago. They love the new lifestyle it has opened up for them and they only wish they could have been involved at an earlier age. Barry and Caroline were thrilled to receive a Christmas card from John with a note of thanks from his parents.

 
Surf Lifesaver Braves Shark

It was a good thing Joanne Lucas arrived early for training on Middleton Beach, WA in late May this year, when a woman ran up to the surf club, shouting that someone was being attacked by a shark.

Belting down to the shoreline, Joanne saw the swimmer about 80m off the beach. She also caught sight of a circling shark fin. Without hesitation, she stripped down to her bathers and entered the water. As she neared the man, she knew every stroke was bringing her closer to the shark.

On approach, Joanne did what all surf lifesavers are taught. She introduced herself by calmly calling out, “Hi. My name is Jo Lucas and I’m here to help you.” To which the injured swimmer politely replied “thank you.” Joanne secured the man and as she began towing him to shore, he told her his name, Jason Cull.

As the shark continued to circle closely in the area, Joanne suddenly noticed two other swimmers, Sally Malone and Jesse Brampton nearby. With her encouragement and instructions from people on shore, they too managed to avoid the shark and return quickly to land. Once in the shallows, members of the public – including a nurse – and other club members immediately came to Jason’s assistance. They commenced first aid on his open wounds and called for an ambulance.

Joanne is modest about the rescue. “I was there and I did my job,” she says. She graciously credits other people who were on the beach that day with helping. But for Jason and everyone who witnessed the 52 year old mother swim out toward what’s believed to have been a 4m Great White, Joanne Lucas is a true hero.

Surf Life Saving proudly awarded Joanne with a Citation of Merit for her amazing display of bravery. Joanne Lucas is another great example of the amazing Australians Surf Life Saving is proud to have as a member of its movement.

 
Renee's "Verry Brave" Surf Lifesavers

“I was trying to swim back and I couldn’t get back in; I was being taken out so fast. It was really scary. I couldn’t see Michael and Chelsea. I thought they had drowned.”– Renee, 8 years

Renee’s vivid recollection of what happened to her and her brother and sister might make you shudder to think about, but consider how lucky she is to be remembering anything at all.

Holidaying from Melbourne on a scorching Queensland summer’s day on Sunday 7 January at Surfer’s Paradise, the three Cottonaro children– Renee, and 9 year olds Chelsea and Matthew – raced to the ocean the moment they arrived at the beach with their family.

Renee, Chelsea and Matthew are active nippers with the Brighton Surf Life Saving Club and live opposite the beach in Melbourne, so are experienced swimmers for their ages. The eager children had only been in the water for a few minutes when the strong surf conditions suddenly and unexpectedly turned dangerous.

A flash rip formed just outside the flagged area and dragged the three siblings out to sea, leaving their parents watching helplessly from shore. In seconds, the patrolling surf lifesavers on duty spotted the children, assessed the situation and with swift action brought the children back to the arms of their parents. The Cottonaro children donated their pocket money to Surf Life Saving and sent a hand made thank you letter to the team that saved their lives.

 
Nippers to the Rescue

On beaches throughout the country, thousands of lifesaving rescues have been performed by surf lifesavers and even a group of nippers from Tallebudgera Beach, Queensland have got in on the action.

In late February, a man and two boys were close to drowning when a group of nippers in the midst of training were alerted and came to their rescue.

The team of nippers instinctively jumped on their rescue boards and paddled into the surf to bring the man and two boys safely back to shore.

One of the nippers, Rebecca Micallef, 13, said there had been no time to think, she just acted immediately. “There were three people in the surf who were in trouble and we just got on our boards and started paddling out there,” she said.

In addition to Rebecca, nippers Daniel Walker and David King, both 12, took turns in towing the man back safely to shore.

“He was hanging on to the back and me and Dave paddled him back in,” said Daniel.

The successful rescue caused a great sensation among the group. The rescue was the first for these courageous youngsters and all were thrilled they could put their training into a real-life situation.

“It was pretty exciting being able to rescue someone,” said Rebecca. “I’m in nippers because I love the beach and I want to help save lives.”

 
Nipper Saves Seizure Victim - Her own mother

Four years of Nipper training proved a real surf lifesaver for a school girl from Port Douglas, QLD.

Baylie Fletcher is just 11-years-old and recently saved her mother from further injury following a seizure. The courageous girl found her mother Tracey, 38, unconscious and face down in the family home. Tracey, who had no previous history of seizures, had smashed her eye socket and cheekbone after collapsing on a tile floor.

The blood streaming from her mouth and nose could have obstructed Tracey’s airways. But because Bailey is enrolled in the Port Douglas Surf Life Saving Nipper program and has often watched the first aid training of older surf lifesavers, she knew exactly what to do to save her mother’s life.

Baylie began by rolling her mother into the recovery position. After checking for a pulse, she started administering CPR and then called an ambulance. QLD Ambulance and Mossman area director Warren Martin praised Baylie’s quick thinking, “She’s done an excellent job. It appears her training has come to fruition in a real event.”

Of course Baylie’s mum couldn’t be more grateful. “I’m so overwhelmed and proud about what she did and how coordinated she was,” Tracey Fletcher says.

Baylie’s family and the team at Surf Life Saving aren’t the only ones who are proud. You should be too. Your support helps to provide First Aid and surf safety training to up-and-coming Nippers like Baylie. Thank you!

 
Nipper Receives Two Medals for Bravery

Surf lifesaver Mitchell Lewis is no ordinary teenager. His exceptional act of bravery last year has been awarded with not one, but two awards including a Pride of Australia Medal and an Excellence in Surf Lifesaving award.

At 13 years old, Mitchell was too young to be classified as a fully fledged surf lifesaver, but that didn’t stop the courageous Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club nipper from rescuing two people from dangerous surf conditions last year.

It was late afternoon and Mitchell’s patrol was packing up for the day when two of the club’s members saw a group of swimmers caught in a strong rip. Club patrol captain Kenny Lloyd and chief instructor Scott Andrews each grabbed a rescue tube and swam out to assist but it soon became clear they would need help bringing the struggling swimmers safely back to shore.

Without hesitation, Mitchell grabbed a rescue board and paddled out to help one swimmer. Moments later, he was ordered back out to rescue a second man. Mitchell managed to pull the exhausted swimmer onto his rescue board and surf a wave into the beach.

The teen braved two metre swells to save the two adult men but Mitchell said he was only doing what anyone else would do in the same situation. “The adrenalin starts to rush and you don’t even think about what you’re doing, you just rely on your training,” he said.

CEO of Surf Life Saving Queensland Tony Scanlan praised Mitchell’s courageous efforts. “For a youngster of 13 to go into the water and save somebody is just phenomenal,” he commended.

Mitchell credits his Surf Life Saving Club’s nipper program for teaching him the vital lifesaving skills and courage he needed to save the lives of two men. Of course, the training and rescue equipment that Mitchell and many other volunteer surf lifesavers call upon each year comes with a big price. If not for our community supporters, who generously donate to the Surf Life Saving Foundation, we could not cover the cost associated with training l

 
International Star Saved

Teenage volunteer surf lifesaver, Sam Doonan, will never forget the day of his first lifesaving rescue. For Sam and his brother Joe, Sunday, October 21 was supposed to be a day for a leisurely swim at Kings Beach, Caloundra QLD but this shortly turned into a dramatic surf rescue.

For New Orleans singer/songwriter Jon Cleary, his plan for this Sunday morning was also a swim at Kings Beach, before performing as a major act at the Caloundra Music Festival later that night. However, Jon’s enjoyable swim at the beach turned into fear when he became caught in a major rip.

It wasn’t too long until the force of the rip became too much & the exhausted swimmer had gone under the water twice. Luckily, Sam Doonan, an off duty surf lifesaver with Metropolitan Caloundra SLSC spotted Jon signalling for desperate help and quickly came to the rescue on his surf board, towing him safely to shore. Little did Sam know, he had just rescued a famous patient, and was equally just as happy to have saved a life!

“I didn’t have a clue. He was just another bloke out there,” Sam said. “It was really special. It was worth it, definitely.” Sam’s rescue skills, acquired through his surf lifesaver training, paid off on this Sunday.“My dad wanted me to get into surf lifesaving because he wanted me to get a better understanding of the surf,” he said.

And thanks to Sam’s quick actions, Mr Cleary was given oxygen by fellow patrolling surf lifesavers before being taken to Caloundra Hospital. The famous blues singer described the experience of getting caught in a rip as terribly frightening.“I started swimming back and I realised as hard as I was swimming, I wasn’t getting anywhere,” Mr Cleary said.

Luckily, Jon recovered from his near drowning experience and went ahead with his performance on the Sunday evening where he payed tribute to his rescuer. Ironically, Metropolitan Caloundra SLSC was a major beneficiary from the performance.