Kayakers assist Marine Rescue NSW in low-tide rescue at Fenninghams Island

newy.com.au – Marine Rescue Lemon Tree Passage volunteers, helped by three passing kayakers, rescued two adults stranded on the mud flats at Fenninghams Island near Taylors Beach in Port Stephens on Saturday 21 February 2026 after their boat grounded on an outgoing tide.

The incident highlighted how quickly conditions can change in shallow waters as tides fall, and the role of volunteer crews responding to calls for help on the water.

Marine Rescue NSW said the initial call was received by Marine Rescue Port Stephens before a crew was deployed on rescue vessel Lemon Tree 30 to assist the stranded boaters, whose 5.5-metre half-cabin vessel had become stuck as the tide ran out.

Skipper Chris Dando said the job became harder as the water level continued to drop. “The disabled vessel was high and dry. We could see the two people standing on the mud flats but there would have been at least 50 metres of very shallow water between them and the rescue vessel,” he said.

Dando said the crew enacted shallow-water procedures to safely close the gap, but “there was still a distance” to reach the pair.

As the tide continued to fall, three kayakers paddling past offered assistance, and Dando said their timing prevented the stranded boaters from potentially having to cross “unstable muddy water”. “The three kayakers worked seamlessly to transfer the two boaters and their gear over to Lemon Tree 30, where we took the man and woman safely on board,” he said.

The pair were uninjured, with Dando saying they had “simply got caught out by the fast-running tide and shallow waters”, and urging boaters to check and monitor conditions because “leaving a little bit earlier can make all the difference to an enjoyable day on the water”.

Marine Rescue NSW said the man and woman were taken safely to Soldiers Point, while their vessel later refloated on the high tide and was driven clear without further incident.

Dando said the kayakers, who were visiting from Melbourne, were thanked for helping make the operation “a seamless rescue mission”, and Marine Rescue NSW reiterated it was a volunteer-based not-for-profit organisation supporting local communities.