Heroes of the coast

IT TAKES a special kind of person to volunteer to regularly put themselves in harm’s way in order to help save someone else.

On Sunday, father and son Ross and Andy Powell gave their lives in the pursuit of saving another when the inflatable boat they and another rescuer were riding in flipped as they attempted to reach a man who had got into difficulty in the water near Port Campbell.

Every summer legions of local volunteers willingly place themselves in similar danger as they patrol our often treacherous surf beaches.

Our surf lifesaving community is comprised of people of all ages and backgrounds — from teenage friends Amy Kenny and Hannah Keane whose heroics rescuing two drowning men at Lorne earned them a Pride of Australia award last year, to people like Ross Powell, a 71year-old dairy farmer with no second thoughts about forgoing his Easter Sunday to help somebody in danger.

These people give up large chunks of their summer to ensure the safety and enjoyment of others. Every year scores of their heroic actions go unreported — all part of the service that beachgoers have come to expect and that has provided a level of comfort and security for swimmers along our coast for more than a century.

For many of the young people who live in our coastal towns surf lifesaving is a rite of passage, honed through years at Nippers and surf carnivals.

While their city counterparts enjoy their weekends and school holidays, our teenagers are learning the values of volunteering and saving lives.

They know, more than most, of the dangers and rips that lie beyond our majestic coastline, and that some of the factors that make our beaches so appealing are also what make our waters so deadly.

As we continue to mourn Ross and Andy, we also take the time to amplify and reflect on the selfless acts performed by the entire surf lifesaving community every week on our beaches. They give their time so that we can feel safe, and for that we are eternally grateful.