Refurbished Coastguard Hawke's Bay rescue vessel gets new lease on life
Coastguard Hawke's Bay's search and rescue vessel Celia Knowles Rescue (CK Rescue) has been given a new lease on life.
Its dedicated volunteers are back on the water aboard the newly refurbished 11.7 metre boat which has carried out more than 300 tows and completed more than 120 Police call-outs since it was first launched in 2009.
Skipper Henry van Tuel says this work has given the community a world-class rescue asset for many years to come.
The project had its genesis almost two years ago when a review of the suitability of the current vessel was undertaken.
A replacement would have cost $1.8m, while the option to replace with a smaller vessel would have cost $1.1m. Instead, they opted to refurbish at a cost of about $250,000.
"We knew that we had a very good sea boat that had operated very successfully here in Hawke’s Bay and that refurbishment would give us the opportunity to update and refresh her," van Tuel says.
"It was also a good use of resources, there are still many years of life left in her yet."
Part of the refurbishment was a new electronics suite.
"We went to market and considered several options and found the best was a Raymarine package supplied by Lusty and Blundell. The ability to integrate FLIR, (an infrared camera) and a visual camera would give us a significant boost in our night searching ability. As well as user-friendly radar and GPS."
van Tuel says the decision to have the work done locally rather than in a place like Tauranga which has a bigger marine industry underpinned the unit's philosophy of supporting the local community.
"We believed that we could find the expertise locally to carry out the work. And the locals came through for us."
The region was not without a rescue vessel during the two months CK was out of the water. Coastguard New Zealand loaned an AC36, one of the America's Cup support vessels, to ensure the crew could continue their work.
"We now have a much-improved Celia Knowles back in the water," van Tuel says.
"She is much quieter with improved sound insulation, refurbished engines, gearboxes and jet units, expanded medical station, new and more comfortable Shark suspension seats, a much-improved navigation station, new and more user-friendly navigation package, expanded night searching capability, refreshed paintwork and new deck tread."
Since the relaunch, the crew has done 13 training sessions including one with the Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter and a number at night using their new imaging camera.
They have also completed two assists (tows) and are busy training for the annual SAREX, (search and rescue exercise) with Police and Surf Lifesaving.
van Tuel says the project would not have been possible without the support from the local businesses including EuroCity Marine, Industrial Manufacturing Services Ltd (IMS), Charman Motor Trimmers and Upholsterers, Onekawa Collision, Hawke's Bay Crane and Platform Hire, ProTrade and Red Steel.
They were also supported by a number of organisations from outside of Hawke's Bay including Hamilton Jets, Lusty and Blundell, Shark Seats and Coastguard New Zealand.
"None of that would have been possible without the support of the following funding organisations, who saw the value to the community in supporting our refurbishment project; Coastguard New Zealand, Eastern & Central Community Trust, First Light Community Foundation, Grassroots Trust, Pub Charity, The Lion Foundation and Trust House Foundation.
"And finally thank you to the Coastguard Hawke’s Bay team and their work on CK while she was being refurbished, that work helped to reduce the overall cost."
