Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) displayed its commitment to water safety, with the launch of a Rescue Runner – in partnership with the National Sea Rescue Institution (NSRI) – in Saldanha Bay today.
The Rescue Runner – named ‘Transnet National Ports Authority Rescuer One’ – will contribute extensively to ensuring that the community in Saldanha Bay are kept safe at sea.
This state-of-the-art craft has been imported from Sweden and represents the latest in sea rescue technology globally. It has been designed specifically for rapidly reaching people at risk in the surf and evacuating them quickly and effectively.
A Rescue Runner, which can be used by a single rescuer, can be launched at swimming beaches. It is jet propelled which allows it to be used in a bathing area without placing other bathers at risk. Each Rescue Runner can carry four people at a time, but can also be used as a floating platform for up to eight people until larger rescue boats arrive.
Tau Morwe, Chief Executive of TNPA said: “On the water, safety is priority number one for TNPA. It is for this reason that TNPA – as part of its corporate social responsibility – has incorporated strategic initiatives to assist in decreasing the number of fatalities on the water.”
NSRI provides a critical service to the South African nation and is run by 980 unpaid volunteers who are on standby day and night throughout the year. There are 32 coastal and three inland rescue bases with a fleet of 92 rescue crafts and 27 vehicles in total.
“Putting their lives at risk to save other lives and facing dangerous conditions at sea are daily requirements of an NSRI volunteer. Being able to do this relies on proper training and excellent equipment such as the Rescue Runners,” said NSRI CEO, Ian Wienburg.
“By forming partnerships with institutions such as the NSRI, which provides vital humanitarian rescue services to all South African water users, we are able to provide a stronger and constructive platform to educate and invest in our communities” said Morwe.
