Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary
Encyclopedia
- CCGA and CMRA redirect here. For other uses of "CMRA," please see CMRA (disambiguation)CMRA (disambiguation)CMRA can mean:*Commercial mail receiving agency*Central Motorcycle Roadracing Association*The Canadian Marine Rescue Auxiliary, a former name for the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary...
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The Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary or CCGA (French: Garde côtière auxiliaire canadienne or GCAC) is a Canada-wide volunteer marine association dedicated to marine search and rescue
Search and rescue
Search and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
(SAR) and the promotion of boating safety, through association with the Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Coast Guard
The Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...
under the auspices of Canada's National Search and Rescue Program
National Search and Rescue Program
The National Search and Rescue Program is the name given by the Government of Canada to the collective search and rescue activities in Canada...
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History
Coastal lifesaving stations manned by volunteers pre-dates Canadian ConfederationCanadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
(1867). The country's first motorized lifeboat, also operated by volunteers, was put into service in Canada in 1907 at Bamfield, British Columbia
Bamfield, British Columbia
Bamfield is a community that is surrounded by Crown Land, Indian Reserves, and portions of the Pacific Rim National Park, located on Barkley Sound, Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The community, with a population of 251 as of 2006, is divided by Bamfield Inlet.- History :Bamfield is populated...
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Formal responsibility for organizing and overseeing search and rescue in Canada was given to the Minister of National Defence
Minister of National Defence (Canada)
The Minister of National Defence is a Minister of the Crown; the Canadian politician within the Cabinet of Canada responsible for the Department of National Defence which oversees the Canadian Forces....
in 1951 and was largely exercised by the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
which organized rescue coordination centre
Rescue coordination centre
A rescue coordination centre or RCC is a primary search and rescue facility in a country that is staffed by supervisory personnel and equipped for coordinating and controlling search and rescue operations....
s (RCCs) to manage RCAF SAR response activities.
Changes to the Canada Shipping Act in 1961 and the formation of the Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Coast Guard
The Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...
in 1962 paved the way for the Minister of Transport
Minister of Transport (Canada)
The Minister of Transport is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing the federal government's transportation regulatory and development department, Transport Canada...
to designate CCG 'marine rescue controllers' within the RCAF rescue co-ordination centres, which were renamed joint rescue coordination centres (JRCCs) denoting the dual role of air and marine search and rescue as well as the joint operation by RCAF and CCG.
CCG search and rescue officials first recognized volunteers formally in 1963, the year after the establishment of the CCG as a separate entity from its predecessor organization within the federal Department of Transport. Volunteer 'search masters' were individuals with access to seaworthy boats equipped with radios and 'volunteer rescue agents' were individuals who served as local points of communication with CCG marine rescue controllers. A special metal sign was provided to identify a volunteer marine search and rescue post and a distinctive pennant based on the design of the CCG jack was also issued: white hoist, blue fly, single red maple leaf with the letters S and R on either side of the leaf.
By the mid 1970s, it became clear that a better organized and trained group of volunteers could effectively augment the CCG's response to marine incidents, especially in remote locations which was affirmed by a 1975 study commissioned by CCG.
The Canadian Marine Rescue Auxiliary or CMRA was formed in late 1978 as a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
in an effort to enhance search and rescue coverage and capability, and to better coordinate volunteer efforts.
The CMRA was renamed the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary or CCGA in 1997. While the CCGA is a separately incorporated organization under contract to the CCG, CCG personnel in each region of Canada do act in a liaison role for coordinating volunteer support. Volunteer response is only authorized through the DND Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centres, which house CCG mission co-ordinators upon being alerted to a marine distress or urgent incident.
CCGA units respond together with regular guard response units in some cases of joint response, as tasked by the JRCC in charge of the incident response.
Mandate
CCGA members are usually recreational boaters and commercial fishermen who use their vessels to assist the Canadian Coast Guard with search and rescueSearch and rescue
Search and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
(SAR) as well as boating safety education. CCGA members who assist in SAR operations have their vessel insurance covered by CCG, as well as any fuel and operating costs associated with a particular tasking.
The CCGA enables the CCG to provide marine SAR coverage in many isolated areas of Canada's coastlines without having to maintain an active base and/or vessels in those areas. The auxiliary is dedicated to providing a permanent day and night search and rescue service to cover marine requirements in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and prevent the loss of life and injury.
- Save lives at risk
- Reduce the number and severity of SAR incidents
- Promote marine safety
- Support the Canadian Coast Guard
- Provide a humanitarian service
- Maintain the highest professional standards
- Promote dedication and pride of membership
Pacific region operations
Some CCGA units on the Pacific coast actually have dedicated rescue vessels, mostly rigid hull inflatables similar to the Zodiac Hurricane 733 or Titan 249 XL. These vessels are owned and equipped by non-profit organizations located in the communities where the vessels are home ported and are crewed by volunteers who are tasked by Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Victoria. The coxswains of these vessels have often been trained at the Canadian Coast Guard's Rigid Hull Inflatable Operator Training School, at CCG Station Bamfield on the west coast of Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
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Uniforms
CCGA uniforms are based on Canadian Coast Guard uniforms with unique CCGA badges and insignia that are silver in colour.See also
- Civil Air Search and Rescue AssociationCivil Air Search and Rescue AssociationThe Civil Air Search and Rescue Association or CASARA, is a Canada-wide volunteer aviation association dedicated to the promotion of aviation safety, and to the provision of air search support services to Canada's National Search and Rescue Program.*...
(CASARA) - Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Halifax (JRCC Halifax)
- Joint Rescue Coordination Centre TrentonJoint Rescue Coordination Centre TrentonThe Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Trenton is one of three JRCCs, jointly manned by the Royal Canadian Air Force and Canadian Coast Guard ....
(JRCC Trenton) - Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Victoria (JRCC Victoria)