Australian Travel - Surf Drownings - a Big Problem for the Surf Lifesaving Australia and Authorities

Every year in Australia, there are too many surf drowning incidents. These are not confined to unsuspecting tourists. Many victims are people who should be aware of the dangers and the rules. Surf Lifesaving Australia can patrol beaches within reason, but they can't patrol the actions of people who continue to ignore safety warning signs and intensive advertising campaigns about beach safety.

Surf rules in Australia are:

ALWAYS SWIM BETWEEN THE RED AND YELLOW FLAGS

NEVER SWIM ON AN UN-PATROLLED BEACH OUTSIDE OF SURF LIFESAVING PATROL HOURS

All beaches have explanatory signs with this information clearly stated on them.

Beachsafe has an excellent website with all the information locals and tourists should read before venturing into the surf.

Despite the signs and a huge, national media campaign to warn swimmers about surf danger in Australia, people continue to ignore the rules and some end up drowning - all for the sake of a swim.

Surf tragedy in Ballina, Australia

It is a sad fact that, earlier this week, three children watched their parents drown at a popular holiday spot at South Ballina on the north coast of New South Wales.

Police said the 44-year-old woman became caught in a rip and her 42-year-old husband went in to save her. One of their daughters desperately tried to contact emergency services (000 in Australia) while the other ran for help at a nearby caravan park where they were staying. Their nine year old brother watched on helplessly.

Surf Lifesaving NSW reported that a caravan park resident dragged the man from the water and began performing CPR until paramedics arrived. The Ballina Surf Life Saving jet-boat and lifesaver helicopter located the woman unconscious in the water. Attempts to resuscitate the couple were unsuccessful.

The girls, aged 14 and 17, and their nine-year-old brother were taken to Ballina Hospital and treated for shock. They are now in the care of a relative, police said.

"This acts as a tragic reminder of the risks of swimming at un-patrolled beaches or after patrol hours,'' Surf Life Saving spokesman Dean Storey said.

The victims are Carole Sherry, 44, and her husband, Joseph, 42. The family of five from Orangeville, south-west of Sydney, were holidaying at a South Ballina caravan park and decided to go for a swim at the exposed beach about 6.30pm yesterday.

Beach safety website beachsafe.org.au describes South Ballina as a "long, rip-dominated beach" and potentially hazardous for swimmers. It is a popular beach for four-wheel-driving and fishing but is less popular with swimmers because of its remote location. It was patrolled over the Christmas period from December 19 to January 3, between 9am and 5pm.

Surfer rescues man at Target Beach - a noted rip site

On 9 January 2010, a mystery surfer has been hailed as a hero. He paddled out two surfboards to save a six-year-old boy and his family from a rip on a remote NSW beach.

The 35-year-old Callala Bay man was surfing at secluded and exposed Target Beach, at the northern opening of Jervis Bay on the South Coast, when he noticed four people in trouble in the water.

Police reported that a six year old boy had been carried out to sea in a rip. His 21 year old sister, 41 year old father and 69 year old grandfather went to help but were also caught in the rip and couldn't return to the shore.

The surfer paddled out two boards to the family and gave one to the boy's father, who paddled in with his son and daughter, police said. The surfer then rescued the boy's grandfather and paddled back in.

Target Beach is a 280-metre beach with two permanent rips at either headland, according to beach safety website beachsafe.org.au.

Queensland's Gold Coast is the surf drowning capital of Australia

Australia already on track for one its worst years of drowning deaths. Drownings nationwide since Christmas Eve have almost doubled since the same period last year, with 41 people dying in the waters of Australia. The Gold Coast had the most, recording four. The only other place to record more than one drowning was Alice Springs, where two people swimming in a river drowned together.

Queensland Surf Lifesaving rescue statistics

ONE in five beach-goers are risking their lives by swimming outside the iconic red and yellow flags in Queensland despite 30 years of warnings. The alarming finding has prompted a rethink of surf lifesaving practices, with more roving patrols and additional flagged areas likely in the new year.

Exclusive figures from Surf Life Saving Queensland, compiled for the first time on the online program SurfMate, show 158,370 beach-goers were sighted swimming outside the flags by the state's lifesavers in 2009. This was 20 per cent of the total swimmers, with 630,696 heeding the message.

SLSQ lifesaving services manager George Hill said while surveillance services outside flagged areas would increase, swimmers needed to wake up to the risks of swimming in un-patrolled areas.

"People need to realize it takes only three minutes for a person to drown and the further away from the patrolled areas they are, the longer it will take to get help . . . if they are seen at all," he said.

"While there will be a fair bit of activity outside the flagged areas to warn people, we don't have the power to force them into those (flagged) areas."

Mr Hill said SLSQ was also keen to increase its presence at remote beaches which were becoming increasingly popular with swimmers and campers. The key areas of focus will be along Teewah Beach, between the Noosa north shore and Double Island Point, and on Stradbroke and Moreton islands.

Figures from Operations Support (aerial and water rescue), Australian Lifeguard Services and SLSQ clubs show 3561 people were rescued from the surf in 2009, 7387 swimmers were treated for marine stings and 12,756 received first aid treatments. Of those, 2482 people were rescued by volunteer lifesavers.

Interestingly, some of the state's safest beaches reported some of the highest numbers of rescues, including Noosa beach, which recorded 224 rescues, second only to Surfers Paradise (292). Burleigh Heads (198 rescues), Southport (151) and Kurrawa (150) were the next highest.

Noosa Beach, which faces northeast and is a favorite with tourists, usually offers tranquil waters. However, looks can be deceiving.

When lifesavers intervene to stop situations escalating into tragedy, the incidents are recorded as preventative actions.

The highest number of preventative actions was recorded by lifesavers attending Surfers Paradise beach, a haven for tourists.

Dangerous surf, storms, shark and crocodile sightings, marine stingers, pollution and algae also closed Queensland beaches for a total of 1591 hours last year.

Summary

Until people realize that the ocean is a dangerous place to be without the protection of a surf patrol, surf drowning incidents will continue to be a national problem in Australia. There is only so much the authorities and lifeguards can do. The beach-going public needs to heighten their awareness of the dangers and act accordingly.

It is sad that so many people drown at our beaches, but most of these incidents would have been avoided if the people involved had given more consideration to the rules that govern beach safety.

Sources:

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26611129-952,00.html

http://www.slsa.com.au/default.aspx?s=beachsafety

http://beachsafe.org.au/Safety_Info/Safety_Signs

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26545509-952,00.html

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26542433-952,00.html

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