The Wave Safety measures stepped up after incident
ARTIFICIAL surfing destination The Wave has put changes in place after concerns over its response to a man’s collapse.
The attraction admitted it “could have done better” when a young surfer fell ill on April 9 at its lake in Easter Compton.
The man was rescued and made a full recovery, but The Wave said there were “failures in spotting the surfer in trouble” at its £26million complex.
South Gloucestershire Council carried out an investigation and said The Wave “cooperated fully”.
The destination has “enhanced” its risk assessment and put in place the following measures:
» Additional lifeguards have been added to the beginner lessons
» Additional training drills
» Spot checks: all lifeguards are ‘rescue ready’ at the start of every shift including having whistles, first aid kit, and rescue buoy
» Lifeguards have been issued with distinctive clothing so that they can be identified quicker
» At induction, customers are told to obey all instructions given by lifeguards
» At induction, customers are told never to attempt a rescue themselves, “as this may hinder action taken by lifeguards”.
In April, The Wave’s CEO Craig Stoddart said it took just over one minute from the moment the lifeguards were alerted for them to reach the collapsed surfer and gain control of the situation.
He added: “We, as the whole Wave team, recognise that this doesn’t meet our high standards.
“Once the lifeguards had control, we are confident our team did everything right in treating the young man and we are very pleased that he has made a full recovery.”
The young adult had been taking part in a beginner open-surf session between 6pm and 7pm, when he collapsed in the shallow bay area of the lake.
“At the time of the incident, there were five lifeguards on duty, four of which were in various locations around the lake, as per our standard operating procedure,” The Wave spokesman said at the time.
“We can confirm that four members of the public and two lifeguards were directly involved in the rescue, which commenced at 6.23pm when a member of public at the shoreline spotted the young man in the bay area.
“He was first reached by a member of the public who was standing on the pier, immediately above him. He jumped in and raised the young man’s head out of water.
“They were quickly joined by a surfer in the water and two further members of the public, as well as a lifeguard who jumped from the pier.
“A second lifeguard reached them shortly afterwards and the young man, who was breathing, was lifted onto a surfboard and paddled into shore by the lifeguard, with support from two further lifeguards entering from the shoreline.”
A spokesman for the attraction said it has concluded a “thorough and robust” probe.
“As a result, we have made adjustments to some aspects of our operating procedures, with additional lifeguards on duty during our beginner open surf sessions and an increased frequency of scenario training and live incident drills for the whole team,” the spokesman said.
“Our investigation was carried out in consultation with South Gloucestershire Council’s Health & Safety team, and they are satisfied with the actions taken.”