The Tribune

THE consequences of our actions can often be bigger than we think.

One of the latest examples of that is the actions of boaters who fail to plan properly and then fall back on rescuers to save them.

The Bahamas Air Sea Rescue Association (BASRA) does life-saving work – so when operations manager Chris Lloyd warns of the dangers of boaters treating them like a towing service, people ought to listen.

He says the service has lost volunteers because of occasions when a rescue has been called for – only to discover when they arrive at the boat in need of assistance, what it really needs is more fuel.

“We actually lost a lot of good volunteers by calling them out of their jobs and going and meeting a boat just needing a tow,” he said.

In today’s Tribune, Mr Lloyd gives plenty of tips for boaters to try to make sure they can summon help if they really need it – but the biggest tip of all is to plan in advance and be prepared.

Boaters should also consider that if they are calling for rescue, they might well be depriving someone else of aid who might need it more – BASRA has one main vessel to cover the whole of The Bahamas. In real need? Absolutely, call for help. But do all you can to stop yourself being in danger in the first place – prepare your boat, fuel up and do not let your failings fall on the shoulders of others.

Driving volunteers away from the likes of BASRA who feel frustrated at being treated like a taxi service is one thing, but earlier this year we heard of another situation driving people away from signing up for the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF).

The accusations of abuse at a Rangers camp have ended up in the courts – but how such a situation came to exist in the first place raised other questions.

The courts will have their say on whether or not the actions at the Eleuthera summer camp were criminal or not – but RBDF Commodore Floyd Moxey last week assured that there had also been changes made to the Rangers programme in light of those accusations.

He assured: “It is a programme that shall not fail.”

Each of the cases above shows the deterrent factor – whether it from people being treated without respect, or with potential criminality. The outcome is the same – driving people away from something they willingly took part in, something that was important to them, that they gave their time and energy to.

And that matter of respect is at the heart of it all. That respect can be to the officers who come out to serve, it can be to the badge that they wear, it can be to the other members of our society – but those who fail to show that respect undermine the very foundations of such organisations.

In the case of the Rangers, there has been reform, we are told. In the case of individual boaters, who can lead such reform? That falls on the boaters themselves.

So make your own pledge – to not make the lives harder of rescuers, be it BASRA, firefighters, police officers, RBDF personnel, lifeguards or whoever it might be.

Do your part – so that they are less likely to have to do theirs.