Wising up to dangers of water
Asimple but valuable lesson is how Samuel Ntsiko Primary School principal Nombulelo Koliti described an hour-long interactive lesson on water safety that NSRI Waterwise Academy trainer Helen Averbuch presented to Grade 3 pupils at the school earlier this month.
“You are a real teacher, Helen,” Koliti said. “You really know how to get the message across to such an extent that I think even our teachers are able to get that message across in our classrooms.” Using Waterwise resources left by Averbuch, the school aims to integrate aspects of the water safety training into the Grade 4 Life Skills programme.
Averbuch is clear on why she wants to work with Grade 3s.
“That’s when kids start wandering off on their own. That’s when they really need that knowledge,” Averbuch said.
The lesson was the result of a call from Grocott’s Mail to the NSRI for realistic, practical safety advice for Grahamstown children who visit Grey Dam, and the adults responsible for them. The NSRI has one Waterwise trainer in the area, at their base in Port Alfred.
It was hardly a coincidence that it happened to be Averbuch, who knows Grey Dam well, having grown up and studied in Grahamstown.
“I want all of you children to be safe when you’re near water,” she told the Ntsiko Grade 3s, explaining that her own daughter is their age.
Averbuch has initiated discussions with the education department at Rhodes University with a view to making Waterwise training part of teacher training and education. Grocott’s Mail’s call to the NSRI followed the tragic drowning of Inganathi Pilisani in Grey Dam in January. Inganathi, 11, was a pupil at Samuel Ntsiko.
The Waterwise messages are simple and clear. The emphasis is on not getting into trouble in the first place by proper planning and observation:
PACK
Pack a bag for your trip to the beach. Prepare a safety plan so that you know what to do if something goes wrong.
LOOK
Look out for waves and rip currents. Slippery rocks are dangerous. Never turn your back on the sea.
ASK
Ask an adult to watch you when you swim. Always tell an adult where you are going and when you will be back.
NEVER
Never swim alone.
Most dramatic was Averbuch's illustration of why you shouldn’t jump into water after a friend who is in trouble (unless you’re an experienced rescue swimmer).
“Our safety come first. To be able to help a friend we must make sure that we do not get hurt ourselves,” advises a bright and simple Waterwise safety poster that was one of the resources Averbuch handed to the school.
Hand gestures were used to reinforce the emergency rescue number to use - 10177 - which the Grade 3s enthusiastically shouted for every other child in the school to hear.
To enquire about the work of the WaterWise Academy, or to request training at your primary school, email searescue.org.za
THE WORK OF THE NSRI
Poorest in the Eastern Cape most at risk
Sea Rescue CEO, Dr Cleeve Robertson, estimates that there are 2 000 drownings in South Africa each year. Of these, 600 are children.
According to the Medical Research Council, those most at risk of drowning are children from poor peri-urban and rural communities. Most people drown in fresh water - farm dams and rivers.
At 455, the Eastern Cape had the highest number of drownings in 2015. Coastal provinces generally have a higher rate of drowning, but even in coastal provinces, most drowning is inland.
In 2015, Sea Rescue con- ducted 575 rescues, most during December and January, saving 629 people and 136 animals.
An annual average of 1 354 rescue hours means the organisation spends an average of five hours a day on rescues, with an average of two people rescued per day.
The National Sea Rescue Institute has 36 bases across the country. They save lives on 3 000km of South African coastline and 1 300km of inland waters.
Close to home
In 2015 the Port Alfred rescue base conducted eight rescues, rescuing 11 people.
The Port Elizabeth base 29 rescue operations that saved 47 people and two animals.
In East London, the NSRI did 13 rescues, saving 15 people.
Prevention through education
Education, advocacy and prevention of drowning through the WaterWise Academy are other services that Sea Rescue provides. WaterWise instructors prevent drowning tragedies through education.
They teach children, specifically disadvantaged children, how to avoid danger in or near water, what to do in an emergency, who to call for help, how to rescue a peer and how to do hands-on CPR.
The interactive presentation, which fits in a single school period, includes learning the emergency number 10177 and is conducted on school premises at no charge.
WaterWise instructors taught more than 195 848 children in 2015. Their aim is to teach 15 million children under the age of 15 to be WaterWise.
Like the WaterWise Academy trainers, the rescue crews are all unpaid volunteers and the NSRI does not charge for rescues. The NSRI relies mostly on donations for funding.
Most of their donors are private individuals who give an average of R50 a month.
Source:
National Sea Rescue Institute NPC: Integrated Report 2015