Local marine rescue unit expands, undergoes name change

The Colchester Guardian Marine Rescue Unit has officially changed its name to Guardian Marine Rescue, a move that was facilitated by the purchase of a second vessel which will operate out of Belle River Marina.

Now with two vessels equipped to help on the waters of Lake Erie, the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair, it was felt a name change was the right thing to do.

“Now that we also operate out of Lakeshore, we felt we needed a name change,” says crew member and spokesperson Tyler Burniston. “We now have the Colchester Guardian operating out of Colchester Harbour and the Lakeshore Alida operating out of Belle River Marina.

The addition of the Alida allows Guardian Marine Rescue to now cover Lake St. Clair and the northern shores of the county.

The non-profit organization is 100 percent run by volunteers, with about 25 volunteers handling crew and non-crew duties.

They specialize in helping anyone in distress on the water, handling about 11 calls in 2023, with about 95 calls in the books since its inception in 2012.

The Guardian vessel is a retired Sarnia police boat that has been retrofitted for marine rescue operations and the Alida is a former pleasure craft that is currently undergoing retrofitting and is expected to be in the water in the next few weeks.

Burniston says that with the recent announcement that Leamington’s fire boat has been grounded, he wants people to know that they are out there.

“It’s good to know there is still a vessel in the water to help people,” he said. 

Their calls come through the Canadian Coast Guard’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Trenton, where it is determined if the Coast Guard vessels are able to reach those in distress, or if it is faster to send Guardian Marine.

Their calls range from boats without power to full-on rescues of boaters in peril.

The organization is always looking for volunteers — both crew and non-crew — and is reliant solely on private and corporate donations. They also hold fundraising dinners once or twice a year to raise funds to cover costs.

The Coast Guard also pays a fee to them, which basically covers the cost of fuel, for any calls that originate with them.

Burniston stresses the importance of boaters to call the Coast Guard, which will then determine if Guardian gets called out or not. Once a call-out is made, a group chat determines how many crew are needed — depending on the call — and who can get to the harbour/marina the quickest. 

Many of the crew members are ex-military, ex-fire or ex-Coast Guard members, so their training is intense and qualified.

The next fundraiser is being held May 3, when they will hold a Pasta and Trivia Night at Shine in Harrow.

For information on fundraising and volunteering, visit their website at guardianmarinerescue.ca or check out their Facebook and Instagram pages.