Lifeguards face busy beaches

Surf lifeguards patrolling last weekend were kept busy, as people flocked to beaches across the country, making the most of their final summer weekend before returning to work.

Surf Life Saving New Zealand (SLSNZ) says crews performed 60 rescues across the country, with 31 of those rescues conducted within the Northern Region (Auckland and Northland, including Raglan).

In the Northern Region on Sunday, peak head counts reached 3,900 at Omaha, 3,500 at Tāwharanui and 3,100 at Takapuna, placing sustained pressure on patrol teams throughout the day. Surf lifeguards at Raglan and Muriwai were kept particularly busy, conducting 12 and seven rescues respectively.

At Raglan alone, surf lifeguards also carried out 10 assists to safety and five minor first aid treatments.

On Sunday, surf lifeguards at Sunset Beach (Port Waikato) monitored a patient with a suspected dislocated shoulder until their father arrived and re-located and took them to seek further medical attention.

SLSNZ General Manager Club Support & Capability, Chris Emmett, says that surf lifeguards were extremely busy this weekend, in many cases responding to multiple incidents across locations while continuing to actively manage risk in the flagged area.

“The consistent trend is that most rescues occur outside the flagged area. We want to remind beachgoers that the red and yellow flags are always the safest place to swim on a beach at any moment in time. When people choose to swim outside the flags, they are far more likely to encounter strong rips or sudden drop-offs that can quickly lead to trouble,” he says.

Beachgoers can use Safe Swim to check conditions and to confirm whether a beach is patrolled by surf lifeguards.