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Tourists, water-related injuries and risk management strategies
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Measurements of hydrodynamics and topography were obtained during two separate field experiments at Palm Beach, NSW, Australia in order to assess flow characteristics within rip current systems during accretionary conditions. At an evolutionary time scale (days-weeks), feeder channel flow decreased and rip-neck flow velocity increased during a cycle of intermediate beach state evolution. At shorter time scales (hours), rip current velocity is inversely related to changes in water depth and is clearly modulated by the tide. Spatially, rip current velocity increases progressively both longshore from the feeders to the rip-neck and offshore within the rip-neck itself. Flow velocity is not constant across the rip channel and increases towards the middle and deeper section of the rip channel. Vertical velocity profiles within the rip-neck and feeder channels show an initial increase in flow magnitude above the bed, with maxima towards the middle of the flow and then a subsequent decrease towards the surface. Evidence of pulsatory rip flow behaviour was found at infragravity frequencies in both rip-feeder and rip-neck environments. Infragravity energy was dominant in the feeder channels during the observed beach state evolution and increased in the rip-neck as the system evolved towards transverse bar and low tide terrace and rip beach states. There is evidence to suggest that topography may exert direct controls on rip flow. The results of this study provide both new quantitative information on the flow kinematics of rip currents and confirm findings of previous studies.
Rip currents are strong, narrow offshore flows of water which occur on many of the world's beaches and represent a serious hazard to bathers. In Australia, rip currents account for an average of 21 confirmed human fatalities per year. Based on an analysis of the longest existing data records, rip currents account for more human fatalities in Australia on average each year than bushfires, floods, and cyclones combined. This finding raises important questions regarding the levels of attention placed on the low intensity, but high frequency rip current hazard in relation to high profile and episodic natural hazards.
Historically, customer health care reflected a worldwide tradition of accommodation providers
looking after their guests under a general duty of care to provide safe lodging. Increasingly
there are legal requirements at most destinations for hotels and resorts to provide first aid and
emergency services because they are workplaces. The new Australian First Aid in the
Workplace Code of Practice is a good example. Even though it is not specifically directed at
first aid for visitors or guests, the fact that mandatory first aid services are required at all
times at a property means that the legal and practical safety net is automatically extended to
hotel and resort customers.
Rip currents are a common hazard to beachgoers found on many beaches
around the world, but it has proven difficult to accurately quantify the
actual number of rip current related drowning deaths in many regions and
countries. Consequently, reported estimates of rip current drowning can
fluctuate considerably and are often based on anecdotal evidence. This
study aims to quantify the incidence of rip current related drowning
deaths and rescues in Australia from 2004 to 2011. A retrospective
search was undertaken for fatal and non-fatal rip-related drowning
incidents from Australia's National Coronial Information System (NCIS),
Surf Life Saving Australia's (SLSA, 2005-2011) SurfGuard Incident Report
Database (IRD), and Media Monitors for the period 1 July 2004 to 30 June
2011. In this time, rip currents were recorded as a factor in 142
fatalities of a total of 613 coastal drowning deaths (23.2%), an average
of 21 per year. Rip currents were related to 44% of all beach-related
drowning deaths and were involved in 57.4% of reported major rescues in
Australian locations where rips occur. A comparison with international
operational statistics over the same time period describes rip-related
rescues as 53.7% of the total rescues in the US, 57.9% in the UK and
49.4% in New Zealand. The range 49-58% is much lower than 80-89%
traditionally cited. The results reported are likely to underestimate
the size of the rip current hazard, because we are limited by the
completeness of data on rip-related events; however this is the most
comprehensive estimate to date. Beach safety practitioners need improved
data collection and standardized definitions across organisations. The
collection of drowning data using consistent categories and the routine
collection of rip current information will allow for more accurate
global comparisons.
From 2007-2012, New Zealand lifeguards provided first aid to almost 9,000 beachgoers, an average of 1,772 cases per annum; more than the average number of rescues (n = 1,343) each year. This study describes the aetiology of non-drowning related injuries occurring at surf beaches patrolled by lifeguards. The study design was that of a retrospective analysis of data collated during five summer seasons from 2007-2012. Cases included individuals who sustained recreational injuries while at a patrolled beach in New Zealand. Incident report forms, routinely completed by lifeguards in New Zealand, were the data source for this study. Of the 8,437 incidents evaluated, 57% of the patients were males, one half (52%) were aged less than 16 years. Most injuries (82%) were minor, almost half (43%) were to the lower limbs. Half (54%) of the injuries were sustained in the water, one third (32%) were attributed to land-based activities. Cuts/abrasions accounted for almost half (47%) of all injuries. First aid responses for both water and land-based incidents are indicative of the nature and extent of recreational injuries sustained at the beach. The diversity and frequency of such incidents suggests that public education promoting beach safety is warranted.
Surf Life Saving Queensland (SLSQ) is a leading authority on beach safety, providing patrol, education, and rescue services to both tourists and local residents along the coast of Queensland, Australia. SLSQ recognizes that tourists are a target group requiring special attention due to their unfamiliarity with ocean beaches and surfing activities, and in some cases having the additional challenge of poor swimming skills, language barriers, and disorientation in a foreign vacation environment. This article describes SLSQ initiatives to provide beach safety for tourists through a focus on service delivery and partnerships with the tourism industry and relevant government agencies. The positive involvement of SLSQ in tourism is a model for other coastal destinations, given that drowning is the second most frequent cause of injury death among international travelers. Yes Yes
Lack of appropriate supervision is a persistent risk factor in most child drowning incidents. The risks to young children associated with swimming at beaches place a premium on close and constant supervision by caregivers. However, little is known about caregiver supervisory practice and perceptions of child water safety at beaches. Adults (N = 769) in charge of children under 10 years of age were surveyed at 18 New Zealand beaches during the summer of 2007 to ascertain caregiver perceptions of their water safety skills, risk of drowning for their child and their supervisory behaviours. Most parents (78%) estimated that they could swim 100 m non-stop in open water, almost one half (48%) had been certified in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and one quarter (24%) had received some rescue/lifesaving training. More than one quarter (29%) failed to provide appropriate supervision for their under 5-year olds at the beach. Almost half (46%) of caregivers did not provide close supervision for their 5-9 year olds. Although there were no significant differences between males and female self-reported supervision, male caregivers were more likely to rate their 5-9 year olds as good swimmers and less likely to estimate a high risk of drowning for that age group. To address shortcomings in caregiver supervision, it is suggested that water safety education initiatives emphasise how to provide close and constant supervision of young children at beaches. Furthermore, a focus on the necessity for caution when estimating risk and ability to cope with open water conditions is recommended.
Drowning is a serious worldwide, mostly preventable injury problem, particularly among international travelers. In 2000, approximately 449,000 people have drowned worldwide, and the exact number of travelers is not precisely known. Although comprehensive infectious disease information has been available to international travelers for many years, advice on injury risk and prevention, more specifically on drowning prevention, has received little attention. The goals of this review were to develop research-based drowning prevention and water-safety recommendations for travelers and to identify research needs for future recommendations. A group of injury-prevention and travel-medicine experts conducted several rounds of voting and ranking of the strength and evidence of drowning-prevention recommendations. Each of the thirty-two recommendations created have also been categorized using the Committee to Advise on Tropical Medicine and Travel scale and have been framed in the context of preevent, event, and postevent categories commonly used in injury-control theory and Haddon's Matrix. These recommendations were developed for use by travel-medicine professionals or others who prepare individuals for travel. Several of the identified interventions to prevent drownings lack conclusive scientific evidence of their effectiveness and warrant further studies to better understand their true effectiveness. Furthermore, funding for the studies of intervention effectiveness and the implications of these interventions for international travelers are essential, yet insufficient.
After pre-existing illnesses, accidents and injury contribute greatly to the morbidity and mortality of travellers worldwide. Most accidents involve road trauma and drowning. Travel health advisers need to undertake an individual risk assessment of travellers' activities abroad and provide appropriate pre-travel safety and security advice and develop contingency plans, in particular advising on important safety nets, such as travel insurance with an emergency assistance service. Those travellers with serious illness and injury may need specialised medical evacuation services, which may involve an air ambulance and a specialised medical team.
Objectives: To compare attitudes and knowledge of beach safety in Australia of beachgoers, rural inland residents and international tourists.
Method: This analysis is part of the 2007 baseline survey for the Science of the Surf project and involved interviews of 367 people on beaches in New South Wales (NSW), 62 rural residents of a moderate-sized inland town and 73 international tourists visiting Sydney beaches. Participants were asked about various aspects of beach safety and shown photographs of beaches and asked to indicate where they would swim and to identify the location of any rip currents. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the predictors of swimming choice.
Results: Most beachgoers were aware that swimming between flags indicating a patrolled section of beach was the safe swimming option, but a significant proportion chose not to swim there. Rural residents were more likely than the other two groups to make safe choices about where to swim in the presence of flags. The odds of international tourists making a safe swimming choice in the vicinity of a rip current were three times lower than usual beachgoers and rural inland residents.
Conclusions and Implications: Improving beach safety will require more refined strategies for specific target groups rather than a series of one-size-fits-all approaches.
Aquatic safety signs are widely used to alert potential users to hazards such as strong currents (rips), submerged rocks or dangerous marine life. To assist in providing guidance on the way such signage should be deployed the present study asks to what extent warning signs on the approach to some popular beaches add to the existing knowledge of beachgoers exposed to such signage. Interviews were conducted with 472 users at four beaches in the Australian state of Victoria. Three different signage conditions were used; no signage, a single standard composite signboard, and signage spatially separated into four types of signs; location name and emergency information, safety hazard symbols, lifeguard service information, and prohibitions. The interview investigated hazard identification, signage recalled, comprehension of that signage and, to elucidate a question about the shape of warning signs, whether users noticed whether warnings were in a triangle or diamond shape. Currents/rips was the hazard foremost in respondents minds regardless of whether signage was present warning of this danger. Less than half of the respondents (45.0%) reported observing any signage. Of those that did report observing signage the majority noticed the hazard related symbol signs above any other information provided. Neither composition of the sign (i.e. separated or composite/standard sign) nor symbol shape affected recognition. Strategies to direct beachgoers to read and heed the information on aquatic safety signage are discussed.
This paper assesses the behaviour of international and domestic students on beaches in Queensland, Australia and their knowledge of beach safety practices. The data for the research was collected from Surf Life Saving Queensland lifeguards/savers, using a focus group interview and a questionnaire survey distributed to a convenience sample of students from The University of Queensland. The results of the research indicate that the international students are more likely to engage in ‘risky’ behaviour at the beach and be less aware of beach safety practices than their domestic counterparts. However, the domestic students also showed significant room for improvement in their behaviour and knowledge of safe practises while at the beach. Of particular concern is the failure of a significant number of students to operationalise their knowledge of safe beach practices to avoid swimming in potentially dangerous circumstances.
The objective of this paper is to analyse rescue history from a lifeguarded waterpark environment using four characteristics: gender, age, water depth and type of aquatic attraction together with the actions taken by the guard to minimise the time needed to restore respiration in the case of loss of spontaneous respiration (LSR). Analysis of 63,800,000 guests with 56,000 rescues and 32 LSR rescues shows that children and shallow water both had relatively high levels of rescues [62.6% for children aged 1-12 years and 42% for water depth less than 1.52 m (5 ft)] and LSR rescues [53.2% for children aged 1-12 years and 65.6% for water depth less than 1.52 m (5 ft.)] with 87.5% of the LSR rescues resuming spontaneous respiration and 75% having a poolside neurological rating of Alert. Recommendations are made to train lifeguards in effective scanning and early victim recognition and rescue together with the use of in-water intervention in rescue protocols.
To describe rescue events at Hanauma Bay using data collected by lifeguards stationed at the bay.
Lifeguard collected data documenting estimates of daily beach attendance, and characteristics of rescue victims and events were analyzed for the period 2000 to 2007.
A total of 4888 Logsheets spanning 2000 to 2007 and 1567 Incident Reports spanning 2000 to 2002 and 2006 to 2007 documenting 1249 rescues were available for analyses. Lifeguard estimates of attendance summing tallies made at 12, 2, and 4 pm overestimated actual attendance by a factor of 1.78 (SD = 0.08) while estimates summing 12 and 4 pm tallies underestimated actual attendance by a factor of 0.91 (SD = 0.04). Both estimates were strongly correlated with actual attendance values (R = 0.98 and R = 0.98, respectively). The average rescue rate for the study period was 7 rescues per 10,000 bathers. Nonresidents accounted for 88% of all visitors to the bay and accounted for a disproportionate percentage of the rescue population (96%, p-value = 0.04). A majority of rescues (63.2%) occurred at a single location called "The Slot." Following rescues, 91.4% of rescue victims were released to the beach, 5.9% were released to their parents or guardians, and 1.4% required transfer to a hospital via ambulance.
Lifeguard estimates of attendance at Hanauma were precise, and summing 12 and 4 pm attendance tallies provided the most accurate estimate of actual attendance. Rescues at Hanauma Bay occurred predominantly among nonresidents and were concentrated to a single location called "The Slot."
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