RLSSWA's Travis Doye, DWER Environmental Officer Cheyne Quesnell, Environment Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson, RLSSWA's Peter Leaversuch and Warren Goodwin, with Trainees Mark Corbett and Tom Pearce

Donation of BAs gives training program a boost

Royal Life Saving WA is pleased to have recently received a donation of Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) sets from the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER), to be used in our training programs. The four SCBA sets were previously carried by DWER’s emergency response team but are now surplus to requirements.

The donated equipment will be used by Royal Life Saving WA trainees, along with staff, to ensure their SCBA qualifications are up to date. Royal Life Saving staff use breathing apparatus equipment while conducting confined space work at venues such as the Elizabeth Quay Water Park, Yagan Square, and the Water Labyrinth at Forrest Place, where chemicals such as chlorine are used.

Environment Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson visited Royal Life Saving WA’s Mount Claremont office today to meet two of the trainees who will be using the donated equipment. Mark Corbett, 19, and Tom Pearce, 20, joined the Royal Life Saving WA Talent Pool program as trainees in September 2020. Senior Manager Workforce Solutions, Travis Doye, says the pair are valued members of the team. “They work alongside Workforce Solutions Technical Operators twice a week where they learn hands-on skills conducting maintenance tasks under supervision, gaining valuable aquatic industry skills. They recently completed their Group 1 Pool Operations qualification with support from their Workforce Solutions mentors. Mark and Tom are also dancers with Maar Koodjal, a group that partners with Royal Life Saving WA’s Talent Pool program to teach Aboriginal cultural skills.”

Royal Life Saving WA Business Development Officer and Trainer Leanne Coverley-Brandis says the BA sets will be invaluable to many of the organisation’s training activities. “The fact that these BA units are now available for these trainees, along with our Workforce Solutions staff, will make it far easier for them to keep these vital skills up to date. As Aquatic Technical Operators they are required to update their breathing apparatus qualifications every year.”

DWER Executive Director of Compliance and Enforcement, Shaun Hodges, said it’s terrific that the surplus BA units will be put to good use. “This is a case of identifying how surplus gear can be repurposed, rather than disposing of it. It’s very much in line with DWER’s values, to recycle and reuse. I hope that Royal Life Saving WA gets good use out of the BA units.”

You can learn more about our Talent Pool program at the link below.

More information on Royal Life Saving WA’s Workforce Solutions services can be found at this link.