Moreton Bay Trailer Boat Club (MBTBC) FORUM

[Frank Ugolini]

EST LITTLE BOAT GETS NEW LEGS The best little boat in Brisbane Coast Guard’s search and rescue fleet has just been given a new lease on life, thanks to a pair of 80hp outboard motors, purchased with a grant from the Community Benefits Fund Unit of Queensland’s Office of Gaming Regulation. Known simply as CG22 to the Coast Guard volunteers who man and maintain her, this small rigid-hulled inflatable (RIB) is only six metres long. Yet she’s been punching well above her weight for nearly five years at Brisbane Coast Guard’s Manly Harbour base. The commander of Brisbane Coast Guard, Allan Tennant, said, “Since she was launched by Brisbane’s Lord Mayor in 2004, CG22 has been involved in nearly 500 search and rescue operations, recovering or assisting ships worth $24.6 million, and helping 1,027 people in trouble on the water. She’s helped boats five times her size, and twenty times her weight. Her twin 4-stroke 80hp engines, the ‘legs’ of every vessel, have accumulated over 1600 hours of service, whereas a similar 2-stroke might expect to last only 500 hours. CG22’s extended engine life is largely the result of regular maintenance by volunteer Coast Guard members, working in their own time. Their dedication has allowed CG22’s ‘legs’ to run longer than many believed possible.” Recently, however, CG22’s ‘legs’ have started showing the effects of constant rescue work in all weathers and rough seas. Commander Tennant says, “She’s been an excellent little workhorse, particularly as she has a shallow draft and can go where our bigger boats cannot. But her engines were getting to the point where no amount of maintenance could compensate for five years of tough duty. That was made clear when CG22’s port engine caught fire on a recent rescue mission. The consequent damage made it clear to all that the time had come for CG22 to get new ‘legs’.” “I’m very grateful to the Community Benefits Fund Unit of Queensland’s Office of Gaming Regulation, for their generous assistance”, said Commander Tennant. “Thanks to them, CG22 will continue saving lives and rescuing vessels in trouble, and generally serving Brisbane’s boating community for many years to come.”