Somewhere along the line the group adopted the name Riverton Volunteer Lifeboat Institute, and then took on the present Coastguard mantle about 6 years ago. That first craft served the area well for 12 years. When they recall the early history, today’s Riverton Coastguarders pay special tribute to two of their life members, Jack Burns and Murray Beer, who were heavily involved in those early days.  In later times the name of former secretary Steve Bickley comes up as a leading light, who in particular is given much credit for the fundraising which allowed the group to commission its present rescue vessel, and build the well equipped headquarters and boat shed.

He was honored with life membership for his work and now lives in Australia . After that first craft came a 12ft 6in Dunlop Inflatable which the unit imported from the UK . The older hands remember with some affection, that they collected and sold beer bottles to raise money, to pay for the fuel they needed for training. Then came an upgrade to Sea Rover a 16ft inflatable, by now the group had proven inflatables as highly suitable for bar work and with ever limited availability of funding the ability to keep maintenance costs down, with this type of craft was a real plus. More of these sturdy workhorses were to come, with an Avon inflatable seeing service until the group’s present 6.8m Naiad was commissioned four years ago. Alongside it there is also a 3m Naiad for response to incidents inside the bar and on the area’s rivers.

When it comes to callouts the local fire brigade has always been part of the picture. In earlier times the rescue boat was housed at the fire station and towed by the fire engine to the public launching ramp. It was full on when there was a turnout according to one of the present day crew. The followed a period when the group and its equipment were housed under the local bowling club. But that all ended in 1990 when today’s handsome headquarters was built with its ease of launching straight into the river, just a few hundred metres from the open sea. But the link with the fire service still remains, and much in the tradition of the English lifeboats, the Riverton crew are called to duty by a continuous up and down of the siren. This also has the effect of alerting the entire population of the town and can result in traffic jams as crews and spectators a like jostle for road room. Electronic pagers are certainly on the wish list for the future. Radio communications have been another development. Listen to the hard cases among the Riverton Crew and that’s all of them, and you learn that yelling and hand signals were augmented with CB radio. SSB and VHF came later when the need for more sophisticated systems was identified. The comedians claim voice and semaphore are still in use.

For all their joviality the Riverton crew take their roll very seriously. Present crew numbers arearound 12 to 14 and there’s extra support on various committees that run meetings and lookafter the administration. Crew training is held every Monday night recreational boating in the area is quite small, and of the present total number of rescue callouts, up to 15 a year, about half each are to recreational boating and commercial fishing craft.

When the calls do come in they are very often “majors” in the highly dangerous weather and sea conditions that Foveaux Strait can throw up. The tragic loss last year of the fishing vessel “Avenger” and its crew of two was an example. Even on its very first callout four year ago, “Foveaux Rescue” faced winds in excess of 50 knots when it responded to a Mayday call form a 37ft vessel that had broached. When Riverton Coastguard arrived on the scene just one metre of the vessels wheelhouse was above the water and within three minutes of the 2 crew being plucked to safety the distressed craft sank. The dedication, enthusiasm and skills of the people who make up the Riverton Coastguard are there for all to see.

Recent Developments.

There is no doubt the purchase of firstly, the Foveaux Rescue and it’s replacement in 1999 the RJC, has placed the unit in a position of deep respect, by the community. That the personnel of boat crew, shore crew and committee are mindful in maintaining the unit, as a world class search and rescue organization. Crew training and upgrading of skills has been ongoing with 5-crew members attaining COC. The electronics have been up graded recently to a CR44 Chart Radar, DS44CR/CA Dual Station. 

The unit has 21 members and committee presently and are also committed to upgrading and keeping pace with IT and systems. 2 new PC workstations have been purchased to monitor the DAMS system, which tracks the RJC, and general administration, and a Laptop with Projector has also been purchased for training and presentations. A new constitution has been written, and a Health & Safety Programme Manual is also been written to keep pace with Govt. regulations.

The most recent purchase of a HPFX160 Yamaha 3 man PWC Rescue Vessel with road trailer, has been welcomed by the crew, who have given very good reports on it’s performance. Also a rescue sled is to be carried with the vessel, for retrieving and ferrying people to safety. This setup will cover around the bays, estuary, river, and quick response to other locations, the 3m inflatable used in this roll, has been retired. In recent times the recreational boating scene has gained momentum, with fishing for the famous Blue Cod, in the straight, and commercial charter work has also sprung up with several boats in demand for day trips, trips to Stewart Island , and up the south coast to the tip of Fiordland. Commercial fishing boats operating out of the port would number about 20. Cruising yachts are moored permanently in the harbor, and the Riverton Sailing Club operates out of the Rowing and Sea Scout sheds. There is a lot of activity out of the port and speaking with boat owners, they are more than comforted by the sight of the SHED on the river bank, when heading out to sea.