Coastguard Mana

17/06/2026

National Volunteer Week 2026!
This week is National Volunteer Week, and we're celebrating our incredible volunteers and the time, effort, and dedication they contribute to Coastguard Mana.
Our volunteers come from a wide range of backgrounds, each bringing unique skills, knowledge, and perspectives to the crew. The commitment shown by both our volunteers and their families makes it possible for us to do what we do and help keep our community safe on the water.

Thank you to all our volunteers for everything you do!

14/06/2026

Today, our crew supported the community at the Mid Winter Dip - Plimmerton Kindergarten. This was an opportunity for crew to do some training while also getting involved with the local community.
Well done to everyone who came along and braved the chilly weather!

26/05/2026

Over the weekend, two of our female crew members attended the Coastguard Women in Search and Rescue training exercise in Auckland. They joined 17 other women from across the country to learn, develop, and strengthen their SAR skills in a supportive female-focused environment.

Over the weekend, they completed a range of practical tasks including setting up and carrying out multi-vessel search patterns, searching for targets in the water, learning the ins and outs of the Hauraki Gulf, and practicing radio communications with Coastguard Operations.

The course also included workshops on leadership, debriefing, and how to approach difficult conversations.
The founder of Te Kiwi Māia spoke to the group, providing valuable insight about the charitable organisation.

Throughout the weekend, our crew gained valuable search and rescue experience while also building connections and working alongside inspiring women from across New Zealand.

13/05/2026

05/05/2026

Local businesses to the rescue!

Coastguard Mana has been having a recurring problem with our ute’s battery draining because it is not driven often enough. The parasitic drain from the keyless entry system meant that, when we needed the ute, we were often met with the dreaded click of a flat battery.

Thanks to Plimmerton Auto Services, a member of the Auto Super Shoppes Group, for installing a solar panel and controller free of charge, and to Burnsco Kapiti for generously donating the equipment.

We no longer have issues with a dead battery, and our ute is ready when we need it. This solution would also work perfectly for your boat - especially over winter where it's not used much and you want to maintain the voltage of your battery. They will sort you out!

A huge thank you to both local businesses for supporting Coastguard Mana and helping keep us rescue-ready.

13/04/2026

One of our amazing volunteers Claudio recently travelled to Auckland to undergo some intensive training to become a qualified crew member. Claudio has come to our unit with incredible experience in sailing and we are very fortunate that he shares his skills and experience with us all. He is also one of our first people to respond to callouts so we are very grateful for the hours he puts into bringing people home safely.

Congratulations Claudio.

This is what Claudio said about the course.

The intensive Coastguard NZ Qualified crew course was definitely that – intensive! From 8 in the morning until 10:30 at night, each night. It was an amazing hands-on learning opportunity. We covered heavy weather helming at night, search patterns, advance use of navigation, radar and chart plotters, high speed helming in NZ’s busiest waterways, and much more… I had the opportunity to work with a great bunch of people, and it has been a big boost to my skills – I’m grateful for this experience.

02/04/2026

A picnic didn't go as well as planned for a group of boaties today. A rogue wave capsized their boat as they attempted to land at Open Bay, south of Green Point. The crew were able to right their boat and retrieve all of their gear and summoned help through a call to Police.

The Coastguard Mana crew responded just after 1300 and due to potential injuries, a hot start was performed. This saw Te Awarua Rescue exceed 5 knots through the Mana channel and that required us to notify the breach of the regulations to the Harbour Master.

We commenced the search for the vessel and crew just as an IRB from Titahi Bay SLS arrived to assist. The vessel and the people were quickly located and due to the shallowness of the beach, the IRB did all of the legwork while TAR remained in deeper water.

The vessel's possessions were transferred to TAR by the IRB and then they assisted us to get a tow line onto the vessel and it was towed to deeper water.

The IRB then did 2 trips and picked up all of the people from the beach and assisted them onto TAR. The passengers were all medically assessed and there was only one potential injury that was carefully monitored.

A long tow was then completed back to Mana Marina where the damaged vessel was secured to wait for pickup.

This is another example of two volunteer organisations efficiently working together to achieve a great outcome. The crew of the SLS IRB were obviously well trained and did their jobs with great skill. The task could not have been achieved by just one of the organisations involved.

Thanks

27/03/2026

Despite the 25 knot forecast, it was a calm sea for Thursday night training. It was a bit different to usual as we had on board 5 potential volunteers who had come down to have a look at what we do.

It was a bit of a tiki tour as we showed them Titahi Bay, Hongoeka Bay and threw in a circumnavigation of Mana Island.

The potential crew all got a chance to go on helm and they all performed very well. At the end of training debrief, they all confirmed they would be back for more which is always a good thing.

Thanks Jessica, Matt, Julien, Nancy and Nohorua. It was great to introduce you to Coastguard Mana and Te Awarua Rescue.

19/03/2026

Te Awarua Rescue has been off the water for a couple of weeks for its 600-hour service and also to have some replacement hatches fitted. TAR was put back in the water yesterday and has successfully completed its sea trials and will be put into service.

We were fortunate to have Phoenix Rescue available while TAR was off the water and it was used for several calls during this time.

Just a reminder that the Coastguard Mana crew will be at the Mana Lions Classic Car show on Sunday at 10am at Plimmerton School. The crew will bring Phoenix Rescue along and visitors to the car show can jump onboard to have a look and get some photos.

14/03/2026

The Mana Lions classic car show is next Sunday the 22nd of March. It is a great day out for the family. All proceeds go to Coastguard Mana and we are very appreciative of the Mana Lions club for their support.