Water safety and cultural diversity combined at Williamstown Beach on Friday, March 21 as part of events marking Harmony Day.
Thirty eight international students from Victoria University, representing a range of nations including Japan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka, took to the beach for a special water safety education session conducted by Williamstown Surf Life Saving Club.
Despite wet weather and poor water quality following recent storms preventing them from actually getting in the water, the students still had a great day learning how to keep themselves safe when they do next enter the surf.
Instructors from Life Saving Victoria talked them through the importance of swimming between the red and yellow flags, always swimming with a friend and checking safety signs and conditions before going in the water.
While these and other water safety measures are second nature to most people born in Australia, they aren’t for many born overseas, especially in countries where swimming is less common and water is less accessible.
This is reflected in water safety statistics, with Victorians and visitors born overseas five times more likely to drown while swimming and representing 39 per cent of all drownings in 2023-24.
The Harmony Day education session at Williamstown Beach is one of a range of measures Life Saving Victoria has undertaken to address the problem, including a stand-alone diversity and inclusion department which delivers activities to more than 30,000 multicultural community members annually.
More information: lsv.com.au/
Cade Lucas.
