- Published:
- Wednesday 28 January 2026 at 11:36 am
| Water Police members take on the final, and most difficult, component of marine response training. |
On a quiet Thursday morning aboard the Searoad Ferry from Queenscliff to Sorrento, passengers found refuge inside the large cabin on the lower deck.
It was a windy day, and clouds overhead threatened rain.
One by one, the passengers noticed two police boats approach from behind and beeline towards them.
The rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIB) expertly rode the ferry’s wake before splitting up.
One hung back while the other, carrying 10 members, caught up to the ferry’s port side, matching its speed and riding alongside.
Within moments, the members raised and hooked a rope ladder to the top deck of the ferry and ascended the narrow rungs one by one.
It was the final day of the Water Police Squad’s marine response training (MRT), and passengers were getting a front row seat as members showcased the most dangerous component of the course.
| Ferry passengers looked on as two police boats approached them at speed. |
Aboard the RHIB was crew member Acting Sergeant Dylan Sloane.
He gripped the bottom of the wet ladder and started to climb.
“I’m not afraid of heights but I don’t love them,” A/Sgt Sloane said.
“The ship climb is one of the most talked about parts of the course, so there’s naturally a bit of apprehension there.
“I was hanging from the side of a moving ship, unharnessed and climbing up 15 metres to the top deck.”
To add to the challenge, a container ship passed by and created a wake that rocked both vessels and turned the ladder into a pendulum.
As A/Sgt Sloane secured the first foothold, a wave swelled towards his boots and separated the police boat from the ferry.
He had learned to anticipate the vessel’s movement as he steadily reached the top, kicked his right leg over the rail and found solid ground on the upper deck of the ferry.
“That final day was my proudest moment of the course, when we put all the components of the training together,” A/Sgt Sloane said.
“And once I climbed to the top, I saw my wife and three girls.
“It was the first time they had all seen dad at work, and they all had big smiles on their faces.
“It made me realise we do something special - something a lot of kids wouldn’t see their parents do.”
| A/Sgt Sloane climbs over the rails as he reaches the top of the ferry. |
Best practice program
The MRT course is designed to upskill the Water Police Squad with specialist capability, such as seizing and boarding moving vessels and working with teams in counter terrorism, intercepting drug imports and exports and intervening vessels with armed offenders.
A/Sgt Sloane described the three-week MRT course as a ‘crawl, walk, run program’.
Starting at Water Police headquarters in Williamstown and other specialist training facilities, members learned key fundamentals like standard operating procedures and trauma medicine.
It then ramped up quickly, with members introduced to the RHIB vessels.
“The RHIBs are 10 metres long and have twin outboard 350 horsepower engines on the back and are super manoeuvrable in close quarters,” A/Sgt Sloane said.
“The air-filled pontoons allow them to be brought alongside another vessel at speed without causing damage to either vessel.
“We spent the next two weeks on RHIBs at Queenscliff in the southern end of Port Phillip Bay where we could practice in more dangerous conditions, transiting the Heads and learning to come alongside container ships that were entering the bay from Bass Strait.
“We progressed to riding along the Sorrento-Queenscliff ferry, deploying the ladder and climbing from our boat to theirs.”
Victoria Police’s MRT is not only highly regarded across the country, but members from other jurisdictions also sign up for the course.
“AFP members from the Marine Unit came down from Canberra to train with us and gain the skills that our members are taught,” A/Sgt Sloane said.
“It doesn’t surprise me though.
“To complete the MRT has been a goal of mine since I joined the Water Police back in 2020 and I was stoked when I achieved a spot on the course.”
| Police members from other jurisdictions join the MRT course. |
Water skills
MRT skills supplement the already-specialised work of the Water Police, responsible for all marine search and rescue incidents, marine law enforcement and port security.
Part of Victoria Police’s Specialist Response Division, the Water Police Squad has consistently grown in staffing, fleet and facilities, with two new bases recently opened in Hastings and Queenscliff to better serve the coastal communities.
No stranger to specialised work, A/Sgt Sloane had spent four years at the Critical Incident Response Team as an operator and negotiator, as well as Rowville and Melbourne West police stations.
But he always had his eyes on a role at the Water Police.
“I’ve grown up travelling, camping and surfing along the south, west and east coasts of Australia. I love it,” A/Sgt Sloane said.
“We have some of the most amazing beaches and oceans I’ve seen anywhere, so I want to be part of a team that protects it and the people who use it.
“Every day here is different.
“We can be out at sea for hours and days at a time, or wading through debris in flood waters.
“You’re often wet, really cold or really hot, sore or operating in horrible sea states – but it’s all made worthwhile when you complete a successful rescue.”
Editorial Sarah Larsen
Photography Jesse Wray-McCann
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