Wyong Coal has provided $2488 from its Wallarah 2 Community Foundation to fund the purchase of five new laptops for Norah Head Marine Rescue.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The laptops will be used for the training and education of rescue personnel.
Norah Head Marine Rescue currently has two very old laptops.
Marine Rescue NSW is the state's official volunteer marine rescue service.
Wyong Coal general manager Peter Allonby said Marine Rescue provided an invaluable service.
"At Norah Head, Marine Rescue provides the boating public and the community with a prompt, reliable, friendly and professional volunteer emergency service 365 days a year, on duty or on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Mr Allonby said.
"They work closely with and support other emergency services when called upon."
Unit Commander William Hignett said the organisation's volunteers were its "greatest strength", recognised for their marine knowledge, courage and community service.
"They are dedicated to helping boaters stay safe on NSW waterways. Marine Rescue NSW is a registered training organisation and our volunteers are professionally trained to national standards for their roles, both on and off the water," he said.
"One crucial part of our training is a specific software program containing details and descriptions of registered vessels. It is used to log on and log off vessels, monitor vessels in transit, enter voyage details, and create incident reports."
Mr Allonby said the weather and ocean was rough on the day he visited the Norah Head base.
"It was a wild day when we visited the command centre at Norah Head and it brought home the hazards that the sea can whip up and the need for vigilance to keep our coast safe," he said.
"By assisting the Marine Rescue station and its volunteers by providing new computers Wallarah 2 can be assured that there will be continued community safety benefits."