Staying safe on the beaches this summer

THE Tweed coast will be safer this summer with new safety devices installed at beaches to improve safety for swimmers and surfers.

Tweed Shire Council and Surf Life Saving NSW have partnered to install new rescue tubes at nine beach locations along the length of the coast.

The devices assist rescuers in trying to help people struggling in the water until additional help arrives, which is essential when no lifeguard is present.

Council’s Manager Parks and Active Communities Murray Smith said the devices would save lives.

“We are pleased to be working with Surf Life Saving NSW to roll out these beach safety devices across the Tweed Coast to make our beaches safer for the community,” Smith said.

“Our open beaches in the Tweed are notorious for rips and sweeps, so it is paramount we have these safety devices readily available for the community to use in an emergency.

“We know these safety devices will save lives, and that’s the goal here, to make our beaches safer, especially outside of patrol hours. We are excited for these to be in place, just in time for our peak summer season,” he said.

Rescue tubes have been installed at Jack Evans Boat Harbour, Fingal Rovers SLSC, Fingal Dreamtime Beach, Cudgen Headland SLSC, North Kingscliff Beach, Salt SLSC, Cabarita Beach SLSC, Cudgera Creek at Hastings Point and Mooball Creek at Pottsville.

Surf Life Saving NSW and Lifeguard Australia Tweed Supervisor Lachlan Field welcomed the new safety devices.

“Last season was a busy one for our lifeguards on the Tweed who conducted 95 rescues, 168 first aids and over 40,000 preventive actions,” Field said.

“More than 500,000 people were recorded using our beaches on the Tweed last season. These safety devices are a great initiative as they extend the safety net at unpatrolled beaches and outside patrol hours.

“It’s important if someone is going to use these tubes that they call Triple-0, assess the risk and only enter the water if they’re a confident swimmer.”

Tweed Council is also working with Surf Life Saving NSW and Surf Life Saving Australia to install a new emergency response beacon on the beach just south of Norries Headland at Cabarita.

For more information, visit tweed.nsw.gov.au/beach-safety-devices