Drownings on Australian beaches and coastal waterways have reached the highest in nine years according to the 2013 National Coastal Safety Report conducted by the peak body for coastal safety, Surf Life Saving Australia, and launched by The Hon. Tony Abbott MP, Prime Minister of Australia.
Beach drownings are at their highest. (Photo by Mitchell Jordan).
While the report shows the lowest rate of swimming and wading deaths in the nine years since the report was initiated in 2004, it shows that deaths are increasingly occurring outside the red and yellow flags.
The National Coastal Safety Report points to other activities such as recreational boating, rock fishing, and surfing as a leading cause of death, representing over three quarters of the 121 coastal drowning deaths recorded last year.
States where there has been a decrease in coastal drowning rates include NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, and Northern Territory, and states where there has been an increase in coastal drowning rates include Victoria and Western Australia.
Surf Life Saving Australia President Graham Ford said that the report presents the Surf Life Saving movement nationally with an increasing challenge of matching community needs for life saving services across the coastline, not just on the beach.
“Surf Life Saving has a growing need to work with our partners and equip people with vital knowledge and skills, and ensure people show respect for the water in the unpredictable and unforgiving coastal environment,” Mr Ford said.
“Drowning rates amongst tourists are not as high as many Australians would believe – the highest increase is amongst baby boomers,” he said
Surf Life Saving Australia’s annual National Coastal Drowning Report launched in Canberra by The Hon. Tony Abbott MP, Prime Minister of Australia, also shows that tourists are one of the least represented demographic groups in our beaches and coastal waterway deaths and that a growing concern was the age group 55-69 years.
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