WILLIAMSTOWN and Altona lifesavers have experienced a hectic start to summer, which was marred by the death of a swimmer last month.
On December 27, a 74-year-old Footscray man suffered a medical condition while swimming. He was brought ashore but could not be revived. It was the second major incident at Williamstown beach since December 1.
Iain Dickson, president of the Williamstown Swimming and Life Saving Club, said four swimmers had seen the Footscray man struggling and asked if he was all right.
“He wasn’t. He then went under the water. I’m not sure whether he dived in or collapsed in. The four young men thought he was in the water too long so they pulled him out, dragged him ashore and commenced CPR on him.”
Mr Dickson praised family members and bystanders for starting CPR before firefighters and paramedics arrived.
The second major incident involved a 50-year-old woman falling from rocks and being cut to the bone.
Between December 1 and January 8, Altona lifesavers treated 15 minor first aid cases — such as dehydration and cut feet — while Williamstown recorded five minor cases.
About 26,559 people visited Altona beach and 22,736 visited Williamstown beach in the same period.
Across both beaches, lifesavers performed 115 preventable actions such as steering swimmers away from rips.
Williamstown had five rescues last year, Mr Dickson said.
“That’s up on our average of almost three rescues per year over the past five years.
“We’re rescuing people from CALD [culturally and linguistically diverse] backgrounds — Sudanese, Burmese . . . you name it, they’re the ones we’re pulling in, generally.
“They obviously can’t read enough English yet to understand about the rips.
“If you do get caught, the rip doesn’t go out for 200 miles; it goes out a short way and then gradually peters out.
“Go with the rip or swim to a 45-degree angle to the side of the rip; get in to the other wave zone and then return to the shore, if you’re by yourself.
“Where people make most mistakes [is] they get in a rip then forget about all the information they’ve ever been taught about rips and they panic and try to swim against it.”
Beachgoers are also being warned not to handle the blue-ringed octopus.
On the January 26, Australia Day holiday — the busiest day of the year at Williamstown beach — beachgoers are being urged to drink plenty of water, wear sun protection, stay in the shade and to download the ‘Play it Safe by the Water’ smartphone app by searching for ‘water safety’ in the app store or Google Play.
