GARDEN ROUTE | KAROO NEWS - The pivotal role a flotation device plays in rescuing a drowning victim is often overlooked. And having these devices freely available for public use is making a real impact in South Africa.
This has been proven over and over again by the National Sea Rescue Institutes’ (NSRI’s) Pink Rescue Buoys - this week marks more than 100 lives having been saved with these devices.
NSRI’s executive director for drowning prevention, Dr Jill Fortuin, says that since the inception of the Pink Rescue Buoy initiative in November 2017, at least 102 lives have been rescued with the innovative flotation devices. And this is without counting any incidences where the Pink Buoys were successfully used and replaced without the NSRI being informed of the rescue.
Fortuin says the success of this initiative is overwhelming evidence that supports the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) 2017 report on preventing drowning. “The WHO stated in this report that all citizens should be taught safe peer rescue techniques (such as throwing or using a flotation device) and should be taught how to do CPR, which is what the NSRI has been doing since our water safety education programme started in 2006,” she states. “All rescues that have been attempted with a Pink Rescue Buoy have been successful and no harm has come to any rescuers, which is what evidence from similar programmes worldwide has also shown.”
It has been noted that most incidents where Pink Buoys are used are when people are caught in rip currents. This makes it crucial for beachgoers to understand why they should swim where lifeguards are on duty and know how to spot a rip current, Fortuin says.
Drowning prevention manager Andrew Ingram cites one of many rescues – one where a Pink Rescue Buoy was used less than 12 hours after it was installed at Glencairn Beach in Simon’s Town. “A gale-force south-easter was blowing that afternoon. Naturally this made securing the pole, signage and Pink Rescue Buoy a challenge, but, I just had the feeling it needed to be done,” says Ingram.
“It was early on a hot Saturday morning when Franswa Fernandez and his partner Alicia Adriaanse decided to take a walk before swimming. When they were heading back Franswa noticed a rip current and how people in the water were still swimming even though it didn’t look safe to him. Within seconds, he saw one of the youngsters being pulled out to sea in the rip which he describes as ‘running like a steam train’. Franswa, a former professional and volunteer lifeguard, immediately noticed something he hadn’t seen on Glencairn Beach before. Right there was a Pink Rescue Buoy. His experience kicked in; he grabbed the buoy and ran into the water. He let the rip take him out to where the youngster was, where he rescue-swam the youngster towards the rocks at Simon’s Town side of the beach.”
Fortuin reminds those who swim at the beach, dams, and rivers to look out for the NSRI’s Pink Rescue Buoys. They are bright pink and can be spotted easily.
“In an event of someone getting into difficulty in the water, they can be used as emergency flotation until help arrives,” she says.
Ingram says the Pink Buoys are public rescue equipment and have been put there to save lives.
Saving a life should be the only reason why anyone removes them from their pole.
A stolen Pink Buoy could mean a stolen life.
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