Drownings:
Outside the Flags:
- 100% of bystanders who drowned attempting a rescue, 2013-2023 did not carry a flotation device
- There were 46 beach and coastal fatal drownings between July 2022 and June 2023 - fewer than last year (54) but still much higher than the year before (25) - but it is still trending upwards
- Last year Surf Life Saving lifeguards saved over 1,500 lives
- The NZ 10-Year Average Fatal Drowning Rate is 57% Higher Than Australia’s
- Over the last ten years, nearly half of beach and coastal fatal drownings occurred at a surf beach - where there is surf, there are rip currents
- People are not drowning when they swim between the red & yellow flags at a Lifeguarded beach
Outside the Flags:
- Surf Life Saving NZ have a national Beach & Coastal Safety programme, but it is not funded - each club seeks must seek funding
- Surf Life Saving NZ offer a risk assessment service to Councils to guide them where to put signs, what the signs should say, and where public rescue equipment should be located
- NZ Search & Rescue funded the creation A Guide to Public Rescue Equipment for the NZ Coast
- ACC is funding the mould equipment so the flotation devices can be made in NZ
- There is no clarity on who is responsible for safety on beaches so this needs to be addressed by Government - it has a been raised so hopefully will be addressed by the new Government
- Surf Life Saving NZ is not an emergency service - they are a national charity trying their best to provide a range of lifesavings services to the public, but on beaches that are owned or managed by Councils, DOC and others
- Surf Lifesaving rely on 4,500 volunteers - current government funding is inadequate to help those who still drown 'outside the flags'
- Many club buildings were damaged or destroyed by the cyclones of 2022 and 2023
- Surf Lifesaving volunteers worked tirelessly with NZ Search & Rescue during the cyclone events
