Bravery on the Reef
HEROIC OFFICERS HONOURED FOR RESCUING BOATIES
THE heroic actions of Cairns water police who saved boaties from drowning in rough seas after their vessel sunk at Arlington Reef have been honoured for exceptional execution of duty in the field.
Bravery, dedication to duty, resourcefulness in emergency situations and long service were acknowledged at a combined Queensland Police Service and Queensland Fire and Emergency Service awards ceremony on Thursday.
Assistant Commissioner Brett Schafferius from the event at the Cairns Regional Council’s civic reception room was proud to see the awards showcase Cairns’ strong community spirit.
“I live in this beautiful city. This is my home as well. And every one of us has a part to play in looking after every one of us,” he said.
“It’s an incredibly important event here today for us to be able to acknowledge the outstanding work that has been done by our police day in and day out right across the region.”
Speaking about the rescue of a Kewarra Beach couple that were left clinging to an anchor retrieval buoy, at night, in treacherous seas after their vessel sunk 30km east of Palm Cove, Assistant Commissioner Schafferius praised the gallant efforts of rescuers Senior Constables Craig Cormie and Chris Mosby.
“That was an amazing thing that they did,” he said.
“They work in some of the most challenging environments you’ll ever see.”
Officers Cormie and Mosby were awarded the Assistant Commissioner’s certificate for intelligence, resourcefulness and dedication to duty.
Snr Const Cormie said there was nothing like the feeling of being part of a successful rescue.
“That’s really rewarding and you know we keep in contact with a lot of these people,” he said.
“Not all of them work out as well as this one.”
Civilian Jayden Brittian was also among the recipients when he was awarded the Assistant Commissioner’s certificate for bravery after giving chase when a Cairns mum was held up at knifepoint in 2019.
Mr Brittian who was just 18, leapt into action after Jenna Drinnan was robbed by a knife-wielding man at Raintrees Shopping Centre.
“He had grabbed an amount of cash off the lady at the ATM and then that’s when I turned around and started chasing him over the road and down the street,” Mr Brittian said. “I went to grab him, and that’s when he turned around and had the knife in his hand.”
The aspiring police officer said it was just his natural instinct to help that made him chase after the offender.
“There was no police called yet, there was no one else around to help, so I just jumped into a mode of trying to help out and help those people,” he said.