Time to address our drowning rate
ACC is laying down a wero (challenge) to all New Zealanders this summer.
There were 90 preventable drownings in 2021, the highest number in 10 years.
‘‘A drowning is a devastating event for any wha¯nau and community,’’ says Water Safety New Zealand chief executive officer Daniel Gerrard.
‘‘These incidents are preventable – if you stop and take time to assess the risks. Collectively, we all have to make better decisions around water.’’
Men were over-represented in the figures, with 76 men and 14 women drowning in 2021. ‘‘They’re a father, a son, an uncle, a brother or a grandfather,’’ says Gerrard. ‘‘To Pakeha males in power boats, Ma¯ori men gathering kai underwater, Asian men fishing from rocks,
Pasifika men fishing from boats ... you guys are consistently overrepresented in our drowning tragedies.’’
And it is not just drownings that are of concern.
From July 1 last year to June 30 this year, there were 27,583 ACC claims for water-related injuries.
That’s about 76 claims a day from people out enjoying activities like surfing, fishing and swimming.
It cost $81 million to help people recover from these injuries.
Water sports had the highest number of injury claims, with 19,351 in this period, ahead of boating injuries (8649).
Males made up 64% of water-related injury claims.
Auckland region had the highest number of claims at 7899.
‘‘We’re huge supporters of people getting out and following their passion, whether it’s getting out with their mates for a surf, time with the wha¯nau by the beach or fishing at their favourite spot on the river,’’ says ACC injury prevention programme lead James Whitaker.
‘‘ACC is here to support people who need it and we’ll do everything we can to help people recover. It’s better for everyone when fewer people are injured in the first place, though.
‘‘We are laying down a wero (challenge) to all New Zealanders to ‘Have a Hmmm’.
‘‘Think about the risks relating to the activity you’re about to do. Think about the best ways to avoid those risks, do things safely and you can keep doing what you love’’