​Coast Guard Auxiliary seeks volunteers to help operate rescue boat in Kincardine

The “Mysis” rescue boat is a community vessel tasked with assisting boats in trouble in the waters of Lake Huron, from Point Clark to Tobermory.

The rescue boat is owned by Bluewater Rescue Inc., while the team on board is called Bluewater Rescue, part of the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary. It operates through the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Trenton which determines the unit closest to respond to a search-and-rescue incident on the water. Goderich also has an auxiliary unit.

Jim Cooper has been coxswain for 26 years, working alongside captain Kevin Vokey, also a coxswain, for the past 20 years.

Currently, the unit has seven volunteers who operate the rescue boat and the zodiac (dinghy) but more are needed.

“We’d like to have two crews of five to six members each,” says Cooper. “So, we need about 12 or more volunteers. Each crew would be on-call a week at a time.”

The season begins in mid-May and runs through to mid-October, with the unit being called out to 10 calls per season, on average.

The unit trains Thursday nights, beginning at 7 p.m., along the north side of the Kincardine Harbour. Drills include vessel identification and operation, rules of the lake, and rescue of people from the water, as well as learning about search patterns.



Captain Kevin Vokey (left) of the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary, hauls "Bob" the dummy from the water; working with Vokey during training, are Jim Cooper and new recruit Steve Shute

Thursday night, the volunteers were doing water rescue, using “Bob” the dummy, who had fallen overboard.

Cooper says the “Mysis” was launched in 1999, and has received numerous improvements over the years. The wiring has just been upgraded, and a new horn installed.

He stressed that the crew members do not go into the water, but rescue people from the boat and the zodiac.

Vokey adds that there is no charge for the rescue services, and you don’t need a radio licence for an emergency call. “Sometimes, people don’t call in if they think there’s a charge for this service.”

Volunteers are needed to operate the rescue boat and serve on the Bluewater Rescue Inc. board of directors. If you are interested, contact ccgaunit235@gmail.com.



New recruit Steve Shute (left) gets properly-fitted for a lifejacket, by Jim Cooper



Steve Shute (left) and Ben Alexander in the zodiac



Jim Cooper (left), Steve Shute, Kevin Vokey and Ben Alexander of the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary onboard the "Mysis" rescue boat in Kincardine Harbour, Thursday night