Karratha marine rescue worker paving the way for females

To celebrate International Women’s Day, the Pilbara News spoke with an emergency services trailblazer leading the way for young females in the marine rescue industry. Department of Fire and Emergency Services Pilbara and Kimberley district marine manager Bec Benson, pictured, grew up in Pannawonica and Onslow and has also lived in Exmouth. Her role is to assist volunteer marine rescue groups between Exmouth and Kununurra with training, support and incident response. In what is traditionally a male-dominated field, Ms Benson said she has been involved in the marine industry her entire life including as a commercial skipper, trainer and volunteer. “We’ve definitely seen a huge increase over the last couple of years in females in marine rescue,” she said. “A lot of the groups are getting more and more females. It used to be sort of seen you needed to be an old sea dog and marine rescue was what you did afterwards but now it’s actually a pathway. “Most of my time in marine I was the only female, so it’s good to see it changing now.” Ms Benson encouraged young people to get involved. “There is a huge amount of support out there now, particularly for women and young women and young men to join from an early age,” she said. “Marine rescue is giving people more of an entry point than it being a retirement point into the industry.”