Lifesavers have called for government funding to be better spent after an $8000 drone that was the ‘hero’ when it rescued two swimmers needed rescuing of its own.
The Westpac Little Ripper drone being trialed to spot sharks and rescue swimmers crashed during a training exercise after bolts sheered off a rotor on the New South Wales Far North Coast last Saturday.
Lifeguards retrieved the drone, which crashed 200 metres off Wategos Beach near Byron Bay.
Lifesavers have now raised concerns that traditional services are missing out on vital funding.
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Monty Greenslade (right), 16 and Gabe Vidler (left), 17, were rescued when a drone deployed a flotation device on Thursday at a beach in northern New South Wales. The drone has since crashed during a training exercise
The New South Wales government recently announced a $430,000 funding boost to Surf Life Saving NSW for the drone trial.
‘The high amount of money spent on trialing these drones could have been directed toward things like inflatable rescue boats, supplementing the program we already have,’ an unnamed lifesaver told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
‘We are still seeing drownings in northern NSW. A drone isn’t going to save a life there.’
Surf Life Saving NSW has sent the drone back to the manufacturer.
‘These things are going to happen from time to time with new technology. We hope it’s not an ongoing thing,’ spokeswoman Donna Wishart told the Bulletin.
The incident happened just two days after the drone helped save two teenage boys in what was described as the world’s first drone rescue.
Monty Greenslade, 16 and Gabe Vidler, 17, said they were initially confused when a drone started hovering above them as they struggled in rough surf off Lennox Head on January 18.
The pair said they thought their world-first rescue drone was to warn the pair of a shark as they struggled in rough surf off Lennox Head
‘We were a little confused, I thought it meant there was a shark until the flotation device fell right in front of me,’ he said.
The pair said they were starting to panic as they tired from battling the giant waves 120 metres offshore, and were relieved once rescue was offered.
‘With the heavy waves, we kept going under and coming up for breath. Then the drone dropped the package and we grabbed on pretty quickly,’ Monty told Today.
He added: ‘We weren’t sure how it could have gone if the drone wasn’t there because we were getting a bit tired and the surf was huge, so we were pretty lucky.’
Westpac Little Ripper Group chief executive Eddie Bennett said the rescue was a full-circle moment for the drone which took three years to develop.
The pair said they were starting to panic as they tired from battling the giant waves 120 metres offshore, and were relieved once rescue was offered
The drone rescue is believed to be the first of its kind carried out anywhere in the world
Westpac Little Ripper Group chief executive Eddie Bennett said the rescue was a full-circle moment for the drone which took three years to develop