story Andrew Clarke [David is a proud RVCP-Merimbula member]
Few people get to feel the adrenalin of putting their life on the line to save another’s, but for Tura Beach locals David Fisk and his mum May, heroism and bravery run in the family.
May was awarded the Royal Humane Society Award for Bravery after saving a 10-year-old boy from drowning back in 1941.
Fifty-seven years later, David has been presented with the NSW SES Director General’s Commendation for Courage after also saving a life.
David was involved with an operation to rescue an ecologist who fell from a cliff top while researching falcons at Wonboyn in Ben Boyd National Park on November 17, 2007.
Although spanning more than half-a-century, both acts of selfless preservation typify the Australian spirit and the lengths people go to save others.
On that day back in January of 1941, May was enjoying an outing with friends along the flooded Cotter River in the Australian Capital Territory.
A priest and two boys were also there to view the flood, but the boys slipped into the river and while the priest tried valiantly to save one of the boys, May quickly jumped into action to save the other.
“It was an instant reaction,” the 91-year-old said.
“We could see the boys and the priest were in trouble and I raced up and took my shoes off.
“I tried to take my clothes off to jump in so I had something dry to put on after, but I was in such a hurry I couldn’t get them off so I jumped anyway.
“I was lucky enough to reach one of the boys and somehow we managed to swim to the shore.
“We were very lucky, but the others weren’t.”
The priest and the second boy both drowned.
In a twist one might expect to find in a Hollywood movie, May was reunited with the boy 11 years later after a chance meeting.
In 1952 May visited a Canberra post office to send a money order.
After giving her name the young gentleman behind the counter asked if she remembered saving a boy called Fergus Campbell.
May said she did, and he admitted it was him she saved on that fateful day.
Needless to say May and Fergus had plenty of catching up to do.
Following in the footsteps of his brave mother, David is used to putting himself on the line, being a member of the Royal Fire Service, Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol and the State Emergency Service.
On November 17, 2007, David, and fellow SES personnel, was involved in a rescue operation to save a man who had fallen onto rocks at Wonboyn in Ben Boyed National Park.
The landscape, rising tide and failing light made access to the area extremely difficult.
Ambulance paramedics had spoken to the 43-year-old man via mobile phone and determined he was in considerable pain. It was later found he had suffered a severely fractured arm and a number of other injuries.
The man was facing a cold and lonely night unless a member of the SES could reach him.
The situation was assessed and Mr Fisk was given the go ahead to locate the man.
A strong swimmer who had snorkelled the area for many years, Mr Fisk attached a line, water bottles and first aid kit to his body, and began the 90 minute trek to the man.
As night fell and the tide rose, Mr Fisk negotiated the cliff base and 40 to 50 metres of chest deep open water to reach the patient.
First aid was administered and Mr Fisk used a space blanket and combined body heat to weather the night for rescue that morning.
Illawarra South Coast Region controller Peter Lawrence Higgins best described Mr Fisk’s feat.
“Although this was a team effort, David Fisk went beyond the normal expectations by acknowledging that should he not have made the decision to undertake the journey then the injured party would have remained in location alone, wet, injured and in pain all night.”
Eden SES safety officer Peta Ford, along with volunteers Robert Pearce and Nicole Bray also received letters of appreciation.
David said although he spent the night on the rocks comforting the injured man, it was a team effort that saved him.
“I was the one that ventured out to the man, stabilised him as best I could and spent the night there and I get the award,” he said.
“Anyone of those volunteers there could have done the same job.
“It was because I had experience in diving and knew the area that I went.
“They all deserve a medal for what they do; they all do the same job as me.”
A retiree, David said he volunteers to give something back to the community.
“I’m retired so I thought I would give a little bit back,” he said.
“I’m lucky I have a family that supports me through thick and thin and I enjoy what I do, especially the difficult jobs.
“We are also lucky we have people like Peter Collins and Rod Whalan who are two of the best trainers out there.
“Peta does a fantastic job as well keeping us safe. John Lacey helps with the radios and Jason Edmunds from the police is also an asset to the area.
“These people don’t get thanked enough for the job they do and as far as my award in concerned, it was a team effort
