Geraldton council to vote on Marine Rescue short-term back-up base if erosion threatens existing headquarters

Geraldton Marine Rescue have agreed to rent a portion of a back-up building if required to evacuate their existing base due to coastal erosion, after last year’s storm season threatened their Point Moore headquarters. At its August council meeting, the council was informed of the impact storm surges had along Point Moore Beach and the immediate threat for the future of the Marine Rescue hub. A managed retreat to the Geraldton Multipurpose Centre was agreed on by the City of Greater Geraldton and representatives for Marine Rescue for relocation and provision of volunteer marine rescue services. Should the present headquarters be affected by coastal erosion, the volunteers would use the boardroom inside the multipurpose centre to continue operations. The council will vote to enter into a lease with Marine Rescue Geraldton, limited to a portion of the Multipurpose Centre, at its meeting on January 31, with a proposed lease fee of $18,000 annually. Geraldton Marine Rescue commander Damien Healy said there would be reinforcements built in the coming months, including man-made walls on the north side of the building due to concerns about erosion in winter. “We’re expecting that we might get in a fair bit of trouble in winter and will have to move, so we’ve planned for it. We don’t want it to happen because it’s (Point Moore) such a nice building at such a good spot,” he said.