Getting through to everyone on Water Safety during the Aussie summer is crucial to all us Aussies, who enjoy the beach, the swimming pool, the local creek or any other favourite water venue. The Royal Life Saving National Drowning Report shows that there were 249 drowning deaths and an estimated 551 hospitalisations resulting from non-fatal drowning incidents across Australia between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2018. Well done to Amar Singh and Turbans for Australia, who involved themselves in the Water Safety ads for the Aussie summer, to get the message across to people of India and The Subcontinent, who sadly, make up a high proportion of deaths by drowning, as stated above.
Amar Singh says their work on the new Water Safety campaign for this summer, campaign featuring Indian migrants faces and voices, will help get the message through and reduce the number of migrant drownings at Australian Beaches and other favourite water venues. “We are targeting the non-English-speaking background communities, especially from the India and The Subcontinent. The message ‘always swim between the flags’ is not new, but the delivery is.”
Steven Pearce from Surf Life Saving New South Wales said the failure to reduce drowning deaths is devastating.
“Just last Sunday in the Royal National Park, we had a 3-year-old Indian boy who was pulled from the water and was resuscitated by some bystanders and who is now in a serious condition in hospital. Last year, our patrol had to rescue three Indian men who had come down from the temple from an afternoon swim, but unfortunately one of those gentlemen drowned and we couldn’t revive him.”
Migrants and visitors, particularly those from the subcontinent, account for a significant proportion of drownings along Australia’s coastlines. Amar Singh believes those deaths are largely a result of cultural and language barriers, so he wants to see all levels of government promote the campaign. Visibility is key. Toddlers and children around swimming pools also a serious group, whereby migrants with their children attracted to a home with a swimming pool. Royal Life Saving Australia CEO Justin Scarr states “a backyard pool a wonderful thing for a family to have, but parental supervision is a must, with 40 per cent of all drowning deaths in children under the age of five”.
