SOUTHERN CAPE NEWS - In November this year, the NSRI responded to three drowning accidents involving children, between die ages of 9 and 13. Two children drowned at the coast and one in an inland dam. Both coastal incidents were supervised school outings to the beach and these tragic accidents have again highlighted the necessity for basic water safety precautions.
NSRI urgent appealed to schools, and parents, across the country to educate children to be safety conscious around water and to always ensure responsible adult supervision for children around all water including swimming pools, rivers, lakes, dams and at the beach. Supervising adults should be adequately prepared to deal with an emergency.
Statistics from The Medical Research Council show children up to the age of 14 are most at risk from drowning in South Africa.
NSRI's WaterWise Academy has successfully trained over 500 000 children around South Africa on water safety, what to do in an emergency and how to initiate basic bystander CPR.
" Always swim where lifeguards are on duty," says Craig Lambinon from the NSRI national communications department.
Here are a few handy tips to bear in mind when embarking on your holiday fun.
What do you do to avoid getting stuck in a current?
- Never go swimming alone and always watch your friend.
- Always have a fixed point/marker on the beach.
- Never swim in rough seas.
- Stay between flags.
- Always make sure your feet can touch the ground.
What do you do when you are stuck in a current?
- Do not panic and stay calm.
- Never swim against or directly into the current.
- If you have a surfboard or body board, stay on it; it will keep you afloat.
- Use one arm to keep you afloat and the other to signal for help while staying calm.
- Let the current take you out to see, then assess how you are to get back to shore.
How do you recognise a current?
- Current strength is determined by tide and wind, which affect the size of the waves.
- The current is usually discoloured - sandy brown.
- The current is rippled on the surface of the sea.
- A current usually starts in deep water, where there is little wave activity.
'We bring you the latest Garden Route, Klein Karoo, Hessequa news'
