Lifeguards at beaches - September 2, 2007

Gozo'S beaches are very popular with swimmers. Unfortunately, the sea claims lives from time to time. The latest fatality occurred on August 10 at Ramla Bay when a father died trying to save his children, who found themselves in difficulty while swimming.

Gozo's beaches need a lifeguard service, that is, an emergency service involving trained persons who can oversee the safety of the swimmers. As pointed out by a reader of The Times on August 20, this emergency service should be manned by qualified, strong swimmers, trained and certified in water rescue, first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, in the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED), oxygen administration and specialised equipment for airway management or aquatic rescue such as inflatable rescue boats and scuba diving equipment. The reader said the service would have to meet the above criteria to be effective and capable of providing a professional service.

The only NGO which seems to be capable to meet these criteria is the Gozo branch of the Malta Red Cross. This organisation has well-trained members and staff and is equipped with all the rescue equipment needed for these emergencies.

The authorities responsible for the safety on the beaches should come to an agreement with the Malta Red Cross to set up rescue teams to watch over our beaches.

The sea at Ramla Bay is known to be very rough and dangerous because of undercurrents. Apart from signs, in different languages, indicating the danger, lifeguards on the beach need to warn swimmers of the dangers. Another solution suggested by other readers is to raise a red flag whenever the sea is deemed too rough to allow a safe swim.

A number of persons were given permission to run an outlet on the beaches for the hiring of sea equipment, including paddle boats and jet skies. The latter could prove dangerous to swimmers and therefore their use should not be allowed beyond the safety line. Apart from providing customers with safety jackets, these outlets should have trained personnel available to give first aid and rescue persons in distress. One also assumes that when the sea is rough, one is responsible enough not to hire paddle boats. Yet, these same outlets should also be responsible to hoist a red flag warning people of the danger.

Until now, during emergencies, the Civil Protection and an ambulance are called in. Although both have qualified personnel to deal with such emergencies, they can be ineffective since too much precious time is lost by the time they arrive on the scene. Medical experts suggest that in emergencies, professional help should be available on the spot and ready with the necessary equipment. Lives will continue to be lost if we rely only on the Civil Protection or ambulance staff.

Lifeguards posted on various beaches will not only be able to help swimmers but also deal with incidents on land such as injuries and medical emergencies.

Admittedly, setting up such a service requires human and financial resources, even if this is to be run by a voluntary organisation such as the Red Cross. The local councils could also help by part-financing this project since it is also in their interest that the beach in their locality is safe.

Such a project requires co-ordination and logistical efforts, yet it would certainly make our beaches safer, both for us and tourists.