LAKE Macquarie was home to the state's busiest Marine Rescue unit when it came to search and rescue missions in July, new figures show.
The Lake Macquarie crew conducted 38 such jobs last month - the highest of the rescue agency's 46 teams - ahead of the Sydney State Communications Centre, which performed 32.
The figures, released on Tuesday, showed that the Hunter-Central Coast cluster of units was the second busiest in NSW, with 72 search and rescue missions for the period, behind only the Greater Sydney group, which conducted 82 missions.
Twenty of the 72 Hunter-Central Coast missions were classified as emergencies and 128 people were safely retrieved.
It came amid 242 search and rescue missions across the state, including 81 emergency responses.
The regional results represented a slight drop when compared with July, 2023, when there were 79 rescues in the Hunter-Central Coast area - but Lake Macquarie's total is up from 37 the same time last year.
Commissioner Alex Barrell said there was a spike in boats becoming grounded, while almost half the jobs across NSW were caused by engine, fuel or battery problems on vessels.
"The rapid response from our crews ensured that almost 400 people on board disabled or distressed vessels were able to return home to family and friends after their voyage on [the] state's waterways didn't go to plan," he said.
"Our crews responded to almost 30 groundings across the state which are avoidable incidents.
"Boaters need to be aware of the tides, the environment and the conditions to avoid grounding their vessel and potentially ending up in an emergency situation."
