Northland Age
  • Northland Age home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Rural
  • Opinion
  • Kaitaia weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Far North
  • Kaitaia
  • Kaikohe
  • Bay of Islands
  • Whangārei

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whangārei
  • Dargaville

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Northland Age

They don't work if you are not wearing them

Northland Age
30 Dec, 2015 08:13 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

USE IT: Coastguard New Zealand CEO Patrick Holmes, sounding the familiar summer boating message.

USE IT: Coastguard New Zealand CEO Patrick Holmes, sounding the familiar summer boating message.

Coastguard is once again urging everyone who goes down to the sea in ships this summer to wear a lifejacket.

"The Christmas and New Year period is always a busy time for Coastguard volunteers, and we can't stress enough the importance of wearing lifejackets," Coastguard New Zealand CEO Patrick Holmes said.

"By wearing your lifejacket you're giving yourself the best chance of survival, because accidents are by definition unpredictable, and it is extremely difficult to put on a lifejacket once you are in the water. Take them and wear them - they are your best protection when the unexpected happens.

"Skippers have a big role to play in this; the skipper is responsible for every person on board the boat. They have an obligation to take responsibility for their passenger's safety."

Coastguard was once again running its Old4New Lifejacket Upgrade through to the end of January, encouraging boaties and members of the public to trade in their old lifejackets for a new one at a significant discount.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The Old4New van, fully laden with lifejackets, will be travelling around the Northland, Auckland, Coromandel and Waikato regions on weekends and key days throughout the summer holiday period. It will be at Kerikeri New World on Friday January 15 and at the Paihia wharf next day, 7.30am to 11.30am both days.

"The summer season is a great time to get out on the water and enjoy the warmer weather with family and friends, however it's important to remember the simple safety rules amongst all of the fun," Mr Holmes said.

The five simple rules could save a life were:

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

1 - Take lifejackets, and wear them. Boats, especially those less than six metres, could sink very quickly, and wearing a lifejacket increased survival time in the water.

2. Take two separate waterproof ways of communicating so coastguard can help if anyone gets into difficulties.

3 - Check the local marine weather forecast before you go, and expect both weather and sea state changes.

4 - Safe boating and alcohol do not mix. Things can change quickly on the water. You need to stay alert and aware.

5 - The skipper is responsible for the safety of everyone on board, and for the safe operation of the boat. Stay within the limits of your vessel and your experience. Take a Coastguard boating education course, like day skipper, boatmaster and marine VHF radio training (www.boatingeducation.org.nz).

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Northland Age

Northland Age

Far North talent shines as Smokefreerockquest returns to Kerikeri

07 Jul 02:00 AM
Northland Age

Eight Northland stores caught selling vapes to under-18s in compliance test

06 Jul 11:09 PM
Northland Age

Far North news briefs: Foodbank closes, focus on vape harm, and kai resilience boost

02 Jul 05:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Northland Age

Far North talent shines as Smokefreerockquest returns to Kerikeri

Far North talent shines as Smokefreerockquest returns to Kerikeri

07 Jul 02:00 AM

Local act Bandwith Riot won first place.

Eight Northland stores caught selling vapes to under-18s in compliance test

Eight Northland stores caught selling vapes to under-18s in compliance test

06 Jul 11:09 PM
Far North news briefs: Foodbank closes, focus on vape harm, and kai resilience boost

Far North news briefs: Foodbank closes, focus on vape harm, and kai resilience boost

02 Jul 05:00 PM
On The Up: Youth gym transforms lives, offers more than just exercise

On The Up: Youth gym transforms lives, offers more than just exercise

02 Jul 12:00 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • The Northland Age e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to The Northland Age
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The Northland Age
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP