With today marking World Drowning Prevention Day, the City’s Recreation and Parks Department wants to increase awareness, highlight the coordinated efforts needed to reduce drowning incidents in and around water bodies, and encourage participation in drowning prevention programmes.
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The annual World Drowning Prevention Day aims to increase awareness of the risks of drowning by promoting strategies and programmes for drowning prevention and water safety.
‘Through the Recreation and Parks Department, the City runs drowning prevention awareness programmes year-round that encourage people to learn how to swim, practice water safety, become educated to the risks of water activities, and offer safe swimming spaces at the City’s beaches and swimming pools,’ said Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health Patricia van der Ross.
In the last summer season, a total of 27 non-fatal and 19 fatal drownings were recorded along the coast, with one non-fatal drowning recorded at a swimming pool. It is important to note that all of these fatal drownings occurred outside of designated bathing areas or when lifeguards were off duty.
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Based on annual statistics such as these, the Recreation and Parks Department places a strong focus on providing safer swimming spaces by enlisting over 600 seasonal lifeguards (340 beach lifeguards and 316 pool lifeguards) for municipal swimming pools, tidal pools and beaches across Cape Town during the summer season. The City’s next lifeguard season will run from September 2023 until April 2024, with the high season starting on 1 December 2023.
‘According to the World Health Organisation, drowning accounts for seven percent of all injury-related deaths. This campaign is an opportunity to come together and commit to making a difference in our communities and around the world by promoting water safety and swim programmes. It is also an opportunity to recognise the efforts of those who are dedicated to saving lives,’ said Van der Ross.
The Recreation and Parks Department forms part of a water safety network in Cape Town and collaborates with a host of different agencies, such as the City’s Safety and Security Directorate, the Western Cape Department of Local Government: Disaster Management, Lifesaving Cape Town and the various lifesaving clubs, and the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), to name but a few.
The City would like to remind the public of four important safety messages to be cognisant of when in and around water:
- Don’t drink and swim.
- Don’t fight a rip current. Float sideways and wave for help.
- Watch your children around water at all times.
- Always swim on a beach with lifeguards on duty, and between their red and yellow flags.
‘The Recreation and Parks Department remains committed to realise its vision of eliminating accidental drownings in Cape Town through partnerships, projects and coordinated action,’ added van der Ross.
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Also read:
City to inspect warning signs at Sea Point beaches following drownings
Pictures: CoCT / Supplied
