RNLI water safety expert gives Sunderland children his top tips for staying safe this summer
RNLI water safety education volunteer Martin Lightfoot was speaking with children at Seaburn Dene Primary School.
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00:00Ok then Martin, just how important is it to get into schools this time of year when the summer holiday is coming up to teach the kids about water safety?
00:07Yeah, well every year there's unfortunately some young people who die through drowning so it's dead important that we talk to schools and talk to the young people about staying safe when they go down to the beach.
00:18And what are some of the sort of issues which children and adults can find themselves in over the summer months down at the beach?
00:24Well you need to stop and think, make sure that you've got the right gear and the right training for whatever you're going to do.
00:29But even if you're just going down for a family fun day, you've got to watch out for rip currents and not getting too close to the edge if you're near cliffs or on piers.
00:41So go on a life guarded beach, swim between the red and the yellow flags and if you get in a rip current, float on your back.
00:51Don't try and fight the current, float on your back and shout for help. Grab something that floats, that's the key thing to do.
01:00And do you notice an increase in call outs and the need for help over the summer months, particularly over the six week summer holidays?
01:05Yes, it's very seasonal so during the warmer weather, hopefully it will come soon, people do go down to the beach to enjoy themselves.
01:14And obviously it's supposed to be summer, July and August are the hottest months, is one of the big issues even at this time of the year, the coldness of the water, what will the water temperature be in the North Sea at this time of the year?
01:25Well it doesn't get much more than 14 degrees, your body needs to be about 37 degrees so you can suffer from a thing called cold water shock, even if you're a good swimmer.
01:35So the best thing is to put yourself in a star float position, float on the back, let your body get used to the cold water for a minute or two.
01:44It takes little or no effort to go in the star float position and try and attract people's attention by waving your arm and shouting for help as loud as you can.
01:54I know you've mentioned quite a lot of things already, if you had to say your top five tips for people going down to the beach this summer, what would they be?
02:00Stop and think about what you're doing beforehand, if you're going to do paddle boarding, make sure that you've got the right type of leash, make sure that you've got the right equipment and training to be able to do the activity that you're going to be doing.
02:18Simple things like sun cream and stuff like that, you don't want to get sunburn.
02:22If you get caught in a rip current, don't try and fight it, go sideways and then try and swim in.
02:29Above all, go on a lifeguarded beach and last but not least, if you are in a difficult situation, lie on your back, head up and go in the starfish position trying to attract attention.
02:44If you see somebody in trouble, you may be tempted to go in but you may be better off ringing 999 and ask for the Coast Guard to come out and do the rescue or go and see the lifeguard.
02:57You may get in trouble, so what we need to do is we need to ring 999 or 112. 112 is the number, if you want more than a euro, you can dial 112 and they'll get you through to the emergency services.
03:13So, if you saw some adults being very naughty and committing a crime, you'd ring 999 and who would you ask for?
03:21Okay then, Laura, can you tell me some of the things you learnt there about staying safe in the water?
03:26So, like, step one is, there's like four steps. Step one is look out for anyone else in danger if you're not in danger and make sure the lifeguard is watching at all times.
03:44And there's a particular shape you've got to take if you're getting into difficulties in the water?
03:48Yeah, no, a star. Yeah, a star float.
03:52A star float, and because if you do a star float, you can maybe bump into, like, an island and you can maybe, like, stop and go on the island and see if there's, like, any things that you can eat or, like, drink.
04:08Why do you think it's important to know about water safety? Why is that important, Laura?
04:13You could drown at some point.
04:16Do you know what to call if you get into difficulties, or if you see someone in difficulties, do you know what to call?
04:201120 and 990.