Port Authority crews fire ready

Port Authority of New South Wales marine crews have been put through their paces, training to ensure a rapid firefighting response in the event of an on-water emergency.

Port Authority of New South Wales CEO Philip Holliday said marine pollution incidents and fires require a response by highly trained specialists and this training ensures around 80 marine workers were firefighting ready.

“Any incident involving a fire at sea requires the most rapid response by our teams,” Mr Holliday said.

“Thankfully these incidents are few and far between but when they do occur our crews need to be fully trained to respond quickly to save lives and property, and to protect our marine environment.

“Port Authority is the lead responder to maritime incidents including fires and oil spills in coastal waters stretching from Fingal Head, Port Stephens to Gerroa, south of Port Kembla and up to three nautical miles out to sea.

“We work closely with our colleagues at Fire and Rescue NSW, NSW Water Police and Transport for NSW (Maritime). Earlier this year our crews played a vital role in suppressing a fire from the water side when it broke out at a Drummoyne location.”

General Manager of Sydney Operations Sarah Marshall said Port Authority’s highly trained emergency response teams regularly respond to reports of marine pollution and undertake thousands of safety audits of vessels transferring potentially dangerous goods such as bulk oil, gas and chemicals.

“It’s vital our workforce has the capability to provide an effective response to on-water fire and other maritime incidents,” Ms Marshall said.

“Port Authority operates a fleet of specialised vessels and equipment used for firefighting, oil spill response and vessel assistance.”

Through the Port Safety Operating Licence set by the NSW Government, one of Port Authority’s primary roles is to respond to all port-related incidents within Sydney Harbour, Port Botany, Port Kembla, Newcastle Harbour, and the ports of Eden and Yamba.

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