The City of Cape Town remains on high alert for the remainder of the festive season – with a particular focus on ensuring the safety of residents and visitors at its beaches and public swimming pools.

“With the recent warm weather, we’ve seen thousands of residents and visitors flocking to our beaches and public swimming pools and I would like to urge all bathers to please exercise the utmost caution. Our lifeguards are patrolling the beaches and public pools in full force and all bathers must please adhere to their instructions for their own safety,” says the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services, Councillor Tandeka Gqada.

“Residents are reminded that alcohol is not permitted on City beaches or at public swimming pools. This rule will be strictly enforced because the consumption of alcohol on beaches often leads to drowning incidents. Alcohol impairs your judgement, balance, coordination and reduces your body’s ability to stay warm. It is therefore extremely dangerous to drink alcohol before or while swimming, diving or boating.

“Unfortunately tragic drowning incidents can happen very quickly, mainly due to a lack of safety knowledge. Beach and swimming pool users must please take responsibility for their safety by familiarising themselves with the safety guidelines and rules below before using any of the City’s beaches or public swimming pools.”

Residents are reminded of the following beach safety guidelines:

• Read and obey the beach regulations and follow instructions or advice from lifeguards.
• Report hazardous conditions or incidents to lifeguards or other beach personnel.
• Do not enter the sea if you cannot swim.
• Only swim in areas supervised by a lifeguard – usually a zone between two red and yellow flags.
• Never swim alone.
• Swim parallel to the shore if you wish to swim a long distance.
• Supervise children closely, even when lifeguards are present. A personal floatation device is recommended for children.
• If caught in a rip current, swim sideways until free and do not swim against the pull of the current.
• Don’t dive into unfamiliar waters – what may seem deep could be very shallow.
• Avoid swimming near rocks, piers, jetties, groynes and breakwaters.
• If you are in trouble in the sea, shout or wave to signify that you need help.
• Only scuba dive if you are trained and certified to do so.
• Do not take drinking glasses, glass bottles or glass containers to the beach as they can break and pose a threat to bare feet.
• Wear foot protection on unclean, rocky or hot sand beaches.
• Do not light fires on the beach, except in designated areas.
• Stay clear of coastal dune cliffs as they can collapse suddenly.
• Protect your skin from over-exposure to UVA and UVB rays by wearing water-proof sunscreen with a high protection factor of 20+. Avoid the sun between the hottest times of the day, i.e. 11:00 – 15:00.
• Wear eye protection – good quality sunglasses protect against UV rays.
• Drink plenty of water regularly to avoid dehydration even if you don’t feel thirsty. Your body needs water to keep cool and replace salts lost through sweating.
• Watch out for signs of heat stroke, which is life-threatening including: hot, red and dry skin; rapid and weak pulse and rapid, shallow breathing. Move to a cooler place, cool the body down and seek medical assistance.

“At this time of year we unfortunately see many cases of minors left unsupervised at beaches, which creates a very dangerous situation. I appeal to parents and guardians to please keep a very close eye on their children when visiting the beach to ensure their safety. In addition, beach users should be mindful of rip currents when swimming in the sea. Rip currents usually occur near the shoreline and result in a strong flow away from the beach through the surf line. If caught in a rip tide, try not to panic or to fight the rip. Rather float on your back and go with the current. Wave your arms in the air for assistance from lifeguards. Strong swimmers should swim parallel to the beach towards breaking waves, which will help bring you to the shore,” says Councillor Gqada.

Lifeguards are always on duty at all of the City’s 36 public swimming pools. Bathers must adhere to their instructions at all times and approach them with any safety queries that they may have. Lifeguard duties include:

• Patrolling and monitoring the pool deck area, lifesaving equipment, diving boards and diving activities.
• Monitoring and controlling the entrance to and exit from the pool (including crowd control measures).
• Monitoring and controlling patrons’ physical activities such as games and free play.
• Identifying hazards and threats to patrons and removing the risks.
• Ensuring their own safety while participating in aquatic rescues.
• Applying the correct and prescribed lifesaving and first-aid procedures.

The public is reminded of the following rules at all public swimming pools:

• Only regular swimming costumes are permitted for swimming
• No alcohol, firearms, animals, soap, glass containers, balls, Frisbees, underwater diving equipment, inflatable mattresses or tubes are permitted on the premises.
• Playing of music or preparation of food is prohibited.
• No running, pushing, ducking, petting, bombing, shouting or rough play is allowed.
• Children under the age of seven must be accompanied and supervised by an adult.
• Children over the age of seven are not permitted to swim in the baby pool.
• Bathers are required to report any illnesses to staff before using the swimming pool.
• The instructions of the superintendent and lifeguards should be obeyed at all times.

Failure to adhere to the aforementioned rules will result in the perpetrator being requested to leave the premises.

“I would like to thank all lifeguards and safety personnel for their dedication over the Christmas and New Year period. Theirs is often a trying job when considering the high usage of our beaches and pools during peak periods. I’m very grateful for the hard work they will continue to do during the remainder of the festive season,” concluded Councillor Gqada.