Tourism push has lifeguards on edge
Govt warned more off- peak visitors at beaches will raise drowning risk
A campaign to encourage tourists to visit regions in off- peak times of the year has lifeguards worried more overseas visitors could drown.
Tourism Minister Paula Bennett says she is open to talking with surf clubs about their concerns and another tourism group says it is time for a national debate on funding them.
Tourism New Zealand last week launched a $ 1 million campaign to encourage Australians to do road trips around the north of the country — including some beaches — as part of a wider strategy of getting visitors more widely dispersed around the country outside peak times of the year.
Hot Water Beach has experienced a surge in visitor numbers during the past few years and says the new campaign will put more pressure on its lifeguards, some of whom are paid for a limited season but most of whom are volunteers.
Surf Life Saving New Zealand said the tourism industry, particularly those promoting the area, also had a role in ensuring the basic safety infrastructure was in place to support the increased numbers.
“What is already a drowning ‘ black spot’ will only get worse if lifesaving services don’t increase to match the visitor numbers — and this will do New Zealand’s international reputation no good at all,” said the organisation’s eastern region manager, Chris Emmett.
Although beach drownings are not broken out, 19 of 456 drownings during the last five years were tourists, according to Water Safety New Zealand figures.
Bennett said she supported the regional visitor push and made it clear the funding of surf lifesaving fell outside her portfolio but she would listen to the clubs’ concerns.
“I’m really excited by the prospects of Tourism New Zealand’s campaign to get more people out into the regions,” she said.
“There are always challenges to growing tourism and I’m certainly open to talking with the surf lifesaving community, to li sten to their concerns and see what government can do to assist.”
The minister said she hadn’t seen anything to indicate that the Tourism NZ campaign would cause any additional water safety issues but the Government would always monitor it and was “always open to doing more”.
Gary Hinds, head guard and chairman at the Hot Water Beach club, said a fraction of the $ 117 million put into Tourism New Zealand marketing would make a huge difference.
His patrol also covered Cathedral Cove, another gem of the Coromandel which features heavily in tourism promotion by a range of organisations.
“Beaches can be as dangerous as the roads,” he said. “We’re attracting people here and they have no understanding of the sea.”
On the eve of the last British and Irish Lions test a fan was rescued by fellow supporters at Hot Water Beach after wading into the sea and being swept away. Luckily t wo rescue boards were on the beach. “They just hopped on the boards and went out.”
Hinds said the rugby fans were stunned there were no fulltime professional rescuers at the beach, which was packed.
There had been 12 rescues at the beach during the past two months, more than what some clubs performed all summer.
Waikato Regional Council took over from local councils to fund surf lifesaving two years ago.
Under current arrangements it will contribute $ 69,235 per year for two years from 2016 to 2018. A council spokesman said in May the club asked for $ 20,000 in “emergency funding” for this coming season.
“We replied that we understood their issues but that it wasn’t possible to give the extra sought as our 2017- 18 budgets had already been locked in.”
Funding would be reviewed for the next 10 years.
Hinds said the $ 20,000 would ensure continued coverage from Labour Weekend to Queen’s Birthday Weekend every year.
January is the peak month for visiting Cathedral Cove and excluding water taxis and boats, the number of people walking there increased from about 25,000 in 2013 to more than 55,000 in the same month this year.
Surf Life Saving NZ chief executive Paul Dalton said volunteers did weekend shifts from Labour weekend to Easter and paid guards, mainly students, patrolled during the week.
Anything out of university holidays became a real challenge because the main source of labour was not there, he said.
The tourism push increased the drowning risk, said Dalton.
“You’ve got the worst case combination of people who don’t understand New Zealand waters and rips and now turning up at a time when there’s no lifeguards on duty — Hot Water Beach is a classic,” he said.
Tourism Industry Aotearoa, which represents tourism operators, said enjoying New Zealand beaches had always been a popular activity for visitors, domestic and international.
“International visitors comprise a small proportion of beachgoers,” said a spokeswoman.
“Surf lifesavers perform a vital community service — it may be time for a wider national debate about how they are funded, rather than focusing on a small proportion of beachgoers.”
According to MBIE research, only 16.8 per cent of international visitors claim to have done some form of swimming or surfing while in New Zealand.
Tourism NZ chief executive Stephen England- Hall said his organisation’s mandate was overseas and couldn’t get directly involved in the issue.
“The challenge for those services which are impacted by more people is [ they’ve] probably been designed at a time when people weren’t the issue.”