Stay safe, stay cool

Welcome to 2022! Many of us are on leave and we’re spending long happy days lazing on the beach or poolside with family and friends. What can go wrong? Well… quite a bit – particularly when alcohol is involved.

The eight days from Christmas Day to New Year’s Day are the deadliest period for drowning, with 201 lives lost over the past 15 years. While this is the main spike, January also sees casualties with the 10th emerging as a key date.  

The sadly predictable spikes in preventable drownings mean many river rescue divers and surf life savers have come to dread summer.

You can read the full article from The Conversation here. It was written by Amy Peden, an honorary Senior Research Fellow with Royal Life Saving Society and the co-founder of the UNSW Beach Safety Research Group.