Flood rescue teams worked from late afternoon into the night in a simulated exercise searching for and rescuing missing people from Broughton Creek on Saturday, 8 August.
Exercise MoPoke saw volunteers split into two teams, with multiple flood rescue vessels launched from opposite ends of Broughton Creek to undertake an on-water search as daylight faded.
Crews responded to a simulated scenario where six people had been swept into the creek following intense rainfall, giving volunteers the opportunity to practice the skills they would use during a real flood rescue.
The NSW SES has responded to 138 flood rescues across the state so far this year, highlighting the importance of regularly training for these complex and potentially dangerous incidents.
Southern Illawarra Local Commander John Wall said training at night helped recreate the challenging conditions volunteers could face during a real emergency.
"With many flood rescues occurring at night, the exercise focused on operating in low-light conditions and gave crews the chance to practise navigating, communicating and carrying out rescues after dark," Chief Inspector Wall said.
"This exercise gave our crews a realistic scenario where they had to work together, search from vessels, locate people in the water and safely bring them on board.
"They also practiced providing first aid, assessing the needs of casualties and safely transporting them for handover to a simulated ambulance crew."
The exercise included night-time missing person searches, rescuing and recovering people from the water, first aid, casualty prioritisation and patient handover.
NSW SES South Eastern Deputy Zone Commander Sharon Fox said exercises like MoPoke were an important part of keeping volunteers prepared for real emergencies.
"Our volunteers respond in all conditions and at all hours and many flood rescues happen at night when visibility is limited and the environment can be more difficult to navigate," Chief Superintendent Fox said.
"Training after dark gives our crews the opportunity to practice working with limited visibility, coordinating multiple vessels and making decisions under pressure in a controlled environment.
"Bringing volunteers from Nowra, Kiama and Shellharbour together also strengthens the teamwork and coordination we rely on when responding to larger flood operations."
The on-water exercise began at 5.30pm, shortly before sunset, and continued after last light, with crews completing their operations later that evening.
