{"id":2497,"date":"2019-04-26T03:21:14","date_gmt":"2019-04-26T03:21:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/?p=2497"},"modified":"2019-04-26T03:21:14","modified_gmt":"2019-04-26T03:21:14","slug":"lifeguards-save-100-in-busiest-season-to-date","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2019\/04\/26\/lifeguards-save-100-in-busiest-season-to-date\/","title":{"rendered":"Lifeguards save 100 in busiest season to date"},"content":{"rendered":"

City of Newcastle lifeguards saved more than 100 lives this surf season as soaring temperatures and dry conditions made for one of the busiest years on record, with more than 1.2 million people flocking to City beaches.
\nCN\u2019s lifeguards have called on the public to exercise caution this weekend, when heavy seas are expected, and after their patrol season finishes on Sunday.
\n\"Lifeguardmediainside.jpg\"City lifeguard Daniel Collins was involved in a rescue at Merewether Baths in December<\/strong>
\nLord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes praised the lifeguard team for their courage and skill in providing the rate-payer funded service that genuinely saves lives.
\n\u201cOur lifeguards saved\u00a0more than 100\u00a0people\u00a0in significant\u00a0rescues\u00a0this season\u00a0and\u00a0effected 15,000 preventative actions,\u201d the Lord Mayor said.
\n\u201cProtecting tourists and beachgoers from the\u00a0dangers\u00a0of the sea is no easy feat, particularly when\u00a0they\u2019re keeping watch over 1.2 million visitors.
\n\u201cI\u2019d like to thank all of our lifeguards for the work they do and alert the public to be careful\u00a0in their absence at some City beaches from Monday.\u201d
\nCity Lifeguard Daniel Collins recalled an incident late last year when he and quick-thinking colleagues rescued a father and his two children from a rip behind Merewether Baths.
\n\u201cThe lifeguard on duty at Merewether Baths raised the alarm to neighbouring beaches, and called for assistance, before entering the water with a rescue tube,\u201d Mr Collins said.
\n\u201cI responded on a rescue board from Merewether together with Mel Thurlow from Dixon Park, and the jet ski was dispatched from Nobbys Beach to assist.
\n
\u00a0\u201cThe quick thinking, communication and actions of all lifeguards involved ensured the three family members were returned to shore safely and reunited with their waiting mother and wife.\u201d
\n\"flaginside.jpg\"
\nCN lifeguards have also administered 2,800 first aid procedures since September, including 80 major cases such as resuscitations, treatment of broken bones and relieving the effects of marine stingers.
\nAquatic Services Co-ordinator Donna McGovern, a former Olympic swimmer, said hotter dryer conditions than usual were behind the higher number of rescues and preventative actions.
\n\u201cThe 2018\/19 summer season was arguably the busiest season the Beach lifeguard service has experienced due to hot dry conditions and the increased activation of the coast due to the Bathers Way,\u201d McGovern said.
\n\u201cLifeguards are extremely proactive when it comes to taking preventative measures. This can include asking surfers to surf outside the flagged area to urging beach goers to swim between the red and yellow flags instead of near dangerous rips.\u201d
\nWhen prevention fails, it can often take just split seconds for swimmers to find trouble and the same time for lifeguards to act.
\nNobbys, Bar and Merewether Beaches are patrolled all year round. Dixon Park, Newcastle and Stockton offer seasonal services over 30 weeks, starting in the September school holidays.
\nWhile April marks the end of the summer patrol season, lifeguards\u2019 community contributions don\u2019t end.
\nDuring winter, they move from the beach to Newcastle schools to help deliver the City\u2019s long-running Water Safety Education Program. More than 100,000 students aged five to 13 years have benefited from the 52-year-old Water Safety Education Program, which has just been nominated as a finalist for a Local Government Excellence Award in the Service Delivery Initiative category.\u00a0<\/strong>
\nFor a breakdown of rescue and treatment statistics from the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, please see the table below.
\nStatistic\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 2017-18\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a02018-19<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Attendance<\/td>\n1 million<\/td>\n1.2 million<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rescues<\/td>\n90<\/td>\n100<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Preventative Actions<\/td>\n13,000<\/td>\n15,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Minor first aid<\/td>\n2500<\/td>\n2800<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Major first aid<\/td>\n75<\/td>\n80<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

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City of Newcastle lifeguards saved more than 100 lives this surf season as soaring temperatures and dry conditions made for one of the busiest years on record, with more than 1.2 million people flocking to City beaches. CN\u2019s lifeguards have called on the public to exercise caution this weekend, when heavy seas are expected, and … Continue reading “Lifeguards save 100 in busiest season to date”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2497","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2497","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2497"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2497\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2497"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2497"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2497"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}