A GME MT406G Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) was used in the rescue of a man and a woman after their 8-meter dive catamaran sank west of Wilsons Promontory, VIC during the late hours of the 20th of March, 2023.
Melbourne Water Police were made aware of a vessel in distress and contacted Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) Australia advising of a possible EPIRB activation as a 8 metre dive catamaran with 2 persons onboard was disabled, adrift and taking water. Soon after, they were advised that the 2 passengers had abandoned the vessel into an inflatable tender and activated their GME EPIRB.
Upon activation of the EPIRB, the JRCC tasked their Challenger Aircraft to assist and sent an Urgency Broadcast to all ships in the area, whilst the Melbourne Water Police also tasked their Rescue Helicopter to assist. The police rescue helicopter was first on the scene and was able to confirm the 2 passengers were drifting in their tender, the JRCC was then able to divert the nearby Grand Princess cruise ship to their location and allow them to successfully rescue the 2 people from their 5-foot inflatable tender using the Grand Princess’s fast rescue vessel at around midnight.
Luckily both the man and the woman were uninjured and were returned to land safely. However, upon later examination it was found that the registration on their EPIRB had expired in 2019. Although this rescue went smoothly and all people were saved, it is important to ensure that the registration details on your EPIRB are up to date before heading out on the water.
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