Water patrol: marine policewoman

From open-sea rescues to monitoring our precious fish supplies, a day in the life of marine constable Gillian Dayton is all about the water. Sarah Wall reports.

For 35-year-old mother-of-two Gill Dayton, life as a constable in Hobart’s marine police force couldn’t get much better. She spends her days patrolling the pristine blue waters of Tasmania’s coastline, making sure commercial and recreational fishermen meet safety and legislative criteria, as well as investigating all water-related crimes in the state. Gill began her career in law enforcement 14 years ago, and walked the regular beat for some time, but since she’s been involved in the marine division she says she’s truly found her calling.

5.45am: Gill wakes up and quickly jumps into the shower before her three-year-old twins, Lilly and Walter, start to rouse. “If I don’t get in the shower before they wake up, I tend to just get caught up in the morning routine,” she says.

6.00am: Gill gets the twins up, then begins the frantic business of getting them washed, dressed and fed, as well as attending to Nellie the golden retriever and Woody the cat. Gill’s husband, Hedley Browning, is an oyster farmer, and will be away from home working a few nights each week. If Hedley is there, he’ll drop the children off at daycare, but if not, Gill will take them on her way to work. “I don’t have time for breakfast myself; I just try and grab a quick cup of coffee!” she laughs.

7.40am: Gill straps the twins into the family’s Tarago then it’s off to daycare, which is just around the corner from their home in Montagu Bay. Gill then continues on the 10-minute drive to work in North Hobart. Once there, she meets with her team for a coffee and chat, to find out what’s on the agenda for that day. Gill is one of only three women in the marine force, but says she’s happy working with the blokes. “If you’ve got a sense of humour – and I’m a bit of a joker – it’s fine,” she smiles.

8.15am: As most of the team files in and takes a seat, there’s plenty of good-natured joking and teasing as everyone greets one another. Nothing major has come up overnight, so it’s duties as scheduled for today. If something significant has happened out on the water, such as a fisherman or diver going missing, the team will drop whatever they’re doing and head out to help search, usually in conjunction with the Westpac Rescue Helicopter. “We don’t end up searching for people very often these days though,” says Gill. “We’ve really pushed the safety issue in the past few years, and most boating people know not to go out in bad conditions, and to have all the requisite safety gear on board.”

8.30am: This morning, Gill and a few others are going out on the water to undertake a few routine checks, so Gill changes into her boating uniform of dark blue polo shirt, work trousers and deck shoes. She and Constable Tim Champion then drive down to the marina, where they’re going to catch a ride out into the open water with a police crew who are heading away for a few days. “I love being on boats – I feel like I’m at home,” says Gill happily.

8.50am: Gill and Tim board Van Diemen and greet the crew, including Leigh Stanley (‘Stan’) the skipper, who has been working on the water for 28 years, having started with the Marine Fisheries department, which amalgamated with the Tasmanian police in 1985. At 23 metres long, Van Diemen is the force’s prize vessel, and the largest. She’s typically used for trips around Tasmania, checking on commercial and recreational fishing boats throughout the state. Usually about five people will be on board, and the vessel is well-equipped with a day lounge, TV and DVD player, full kitchen with oven, microwave and fridge, washing machine, deck chairs, bunk rooms and so on. “We eat better when we’re away on trips than we do at home,” smiles Gill. “We all take turns to cook – Stan does a lovely Chinese meal – and whoever doesn’t cook does the dishes.”

9am: As everyone gathers in the wheelhouse, Stan radios the port control to let them know Van Diemen is ready to leave. There’s a strong sense of camaraderie between the crew members, and a definite feeling that everyone here really does love their job. “We’re so lucky,” says Gill. “We’ve really won the Lotto in the job stakes.” And heading out into the open water on this clear day, it’s not hard to see why she feels that way. A school of 30 sleek grey dolphins passes Van Diemen and pauses to play as the ship heads into the ocean. The beautiful mammals glide through the water as they race with the vessel, effortlessly outstripping it then gracefully backtracking to play again, their skin glistening in the sunlight.

9.30am: Van Diemen is off –  the vessel cruises at 20 knots, and can do 30 if required. Top speed was definitely the order of the day when the boat was called upon to help out with the rescue of the crew members of Skandia in the 2004 Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. Van Diemen and its crew were anchored off Tasmania’s east coast overnight, awaiting the arrival of the yachts at the finish line, when a distress call came through. Stan, Gill and the others on board immediately set off, travelling through the night to get to the stricken ship. By the time they arrived, Skandia’s keel had serious damage and the crew members had lost control of the boat, with their lives in real danger. “I definitely had the adrenaline pumping,” recalls Gill, “but we all just sort of went on to autopilot and did what had to be done.” Van Diemen launched its tiny rescue dinghy to retrieve Skandia’s crew from the two life rafts they had retreated to, and, with just a few people able to be transported to the ship at a time, managed to eventually rescue all 16 men on board, nine hours after that first call for help had come through. Gill and three other crew members later received Commissioners Commendations for their actions in the Skandia rescue, in recognition of their crewmanship and bravery. “Everyone on this boat knows what they’re doing and is well trained,” says Stan. “We have a bit of fun in the evenings but when something happens it’s all very serious.”

9.45am: Today however, events aren’t quite so dramatic, and Gill and Tim are going to check on some rock lobster pots out at Ironpot Island, at the entrance to the Derwent River. The big ship pauses in the water while the two offload the small inflatable runabout boat from Van Diemen then speed over to the island. “The Van Diemen’s just like a bus and Stan’s the bus driver – he takes us wherever we want to go!” laughs Gill.

9.50am: Once the two arrive on the island, Gill does a routine check of the marker buoys attached to the pots. “People are issued with licences to set pots and they have to display them on the buoys. We’ll check those numbers then randomly pull a pot and make sure it’s all okay – that the escape gap’s the right size, the bait sticks aren’t in too far and so on,” she explains. If there’s a problem, Gill will confiscate the pot then get in touch with the owner by tracking them down through their licence number. If something seems suspicious, the force might mount a surveillance operation on the island overnight, along with an unmarked boat in the water. “Most of the time when we do surveillance we get dropped off at night on an island,” explains Gill. “There are lots of snake-infested islands and bird rookeries around, so you have to be careful where you put your feet!”

10.05am: All seems to be in order with the pots, so another police boat, Dauntless, which Constable Allan Skeggs (‘Skeggsy’) is driving, picks up Tim, Gill and the runabout from the island. Dauntless is a smaller boat, about 10 metres long, and is used for routine duties as well as for medical evacuations from nearby Bruny Island. Bruny has a population of about 900 people, and the regular ferry service from Hobart to the island stops at night. “We’ve had a few births on board!” says Gill.

10.30am: Tim spies a small fishing boat in the water, so Skeggsy steers the boat in that direction to check it out. Once they’re close to the vessel, Gill jumps in the runabout and takes it up to the boat, where she introduces herself to the fishermen and asks to come on board. The two men are friendly and cooperative, and Gill spends a quick few minutes making sure they’re both wearing life jackets, that the boat meets all of the safety requirements and that the fish they’ve caught are of legal size. “If you jump on a boat and everything looks okay a check will only take about 10 minutes. But if things look a bit dodgy you might spend an hour or so checking for hidden wells [where fishermen hide extra or undersize fish] and things. The majority of fishermen now abide by the law though – otherwise they risk huge fines,” explains Gill.

To learn more about Gill’s division, go to www.police.tas.gov.au/on-the-beat/marine.

Words: Sarah Wall. Photography: Scott Hawkins. Hair: Melissa Riley for Papillon Hair. Make-up: Estelle Davis for Papillon Beauty.