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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday June 7, 2008 - 19 TOWARF volunteers kept busy rescuing boaters in distress By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF "Man overboard!" Hearing the captain's cry the five-man crew of the TOWARF (Town of Oakville Water-Air Rescue Force) Stanley Boat rapidly surveyed the choppy waters of Lake Ontario until they caught sight of their distressed quarry. As the boat was brought about the crewmembers pointed towards the floating victim and kept pointing. They know even a form as large as an adult person is easily lost among the heaving waves. With the boat now close to its target some of the crewmembers grabbed long poles, which they used to coax the victim in closer before hauling him to safety. A successful rescue -- provided the practice buoy does not succumb to hypothermia. This was how many of the volunteer members of TOWARF spent their long weekend, patrolling the Oakville coastline and undertaking drills, like the one mentioned above, in preparation for the day when the drowning victim is real. The Coast Guard Auxiliary Unit was founded in 1954 by then Trafalgar Township Police Chief Fred Oliver. The creation of this service took place in the wake a terrible incident on Lake Ontario in which a number of Sea Scouts from Oakville went missing after being caught in a storm as they journeyed by boat from Oakville to the Grimsby area. "Of course we didn't have any search organization to call on," wrote Oliver about the incident. "So the police, firefighters, power boaters and sailors from the yacht club all joined in the search for the Sea Scouts." In the end, the incident would claim the lives of two of the scouts and a scoutmaster. After the search, Oliver heard OAKVILLE BEAVER FILE PHOTO ANSWERING THE CALL: Last year, TOWARF's Stanley boat responded to 48 distress calls. boaters talking about how they did not know what areas had been covered and what areas had not been covered by the search. The need for more organization was clear and so TOWARF was born with the Oakville Lions Club donating $3,000 for the purchasing of a 23-foot Hunter Single Screw mahogany boat from a resident of Burlington. As the years rolled by some of the technology has changed, but the need for TOWARF stayed the same and even became greater. "Last year we had around 54 calls," said Mark Dowinton, TOWARF's current commander. "Last year was a very busy year." The workload is not looking any lighter this year with TOWARF receiving a distress call just four hours into its 2008 season, which began in late April. Dowinton noted that the crew was conducting training exercises in the vicinity of Oakville Harbour when they became aware of a vessel in distress. The vessel, with two adults and two children on board, had suffered engine failure approximately one mile off the Oakville shoreline and despite their efforts to paddle to safety for over an hour, the wind had pushed the vessel farther out onto the lake. TOWARF promptly arrived on scene and towed the vessel and its passengers to the safety of Oakville Harbour. Dowinton urges all boaters to ensure their vessels are seaworthy before venturing out on the water. He also pointed out that it is important to have the proper emergency gear on board noting that the boater in the previously mentioned situation did not have a VHF radio, but rather a cell phone. Dowinton said that although the boater was able to alert the authorities to his distress cell phones are unreliable on the water and they do not allow rescuers to properly determine a vessel's location. "A lot of boaters really don't know what to do in the event of an emergency," said Dowinton. "They buy a boat take it out and they treat it like a car. They don't even think about what they're going to do if they get out there and the engine won't start." With a main patrol area 10 miles off the coast of Oakville, between Burloak Drive and the St. Lawrence Pier, the TOWARF Stanley boat can go anywhere it is tasked, weather permitting, during its patrol season, which runs from late April until late October. The boat is equipped with various radios, radar, water depth and temperature instruments, GPS, a roof mounted spotlight, night vision goggles, a burn kit and much more. The TOWARF boat has 11 crews, around 90 volunteers in all, who take turns being stationed at the TOWARF building, located at the bottom of Navy Street. The shifts run from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and noon to 10 p.m. on weekends and public holidays. In total, TOWARF personnel, who the Town and the Coast Guard fund, spend more than 10,000 hours a year looking out for the safety of the area's boaters. Dowinton noted this is not always an easy task given the practices of some Oakville residents on the water. "The biggest problem I would say is people going out in their boats without their PFD's (personal floatation devices)," he said. Ensuring you have sufficient fuel for the journey and telling someone where you are going are other precautions some local boaters have difficulty with, Dowinton said. While not every boater will change their ways Dowinton noted that they can be educated to know what to do when an emergency happens and in that spirit an initiative is currently underway with the Town to place large signs on the arms of the harbours that will display who to call in the event of a boating emergency. Boaters in distress can contact Prescott Coast Guard Radio Marine Channel 16 or *16 on a cellular phone or the Trenton Joint Rescue Coordination Centre at 1-800-267-7270. It is with immense pleasure that the staff at the Animal Hospital of Oakville wish to convey their congratulations to Dr. Joanne Best for thirty years of Veterinary Excellence. We wish you continued success and many more years of health and happiness! Animal Hospital of Oakville 234 South Service Rd. E., Oakville, ON L6J 2X5 905-844-3331 If you have a news tip or story idea, call the Oakville Beaver at 845-3824. PROUDLY SERVING HALTON SINCE 1987... WORRY TOO MUCH? 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