THE National Sea Rescue Institute’s (NSRI) Pink Rescue Buoy initiative, now near the Illovo Rivermouth, is aimed at enhancing water safety and saving lives.
Following a tragic drowning incident, Winston Robertson, a business owner with a view of the beach, reached out to the NSRI to ask them to consider establishing a rescue station at his lodge.
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“As a start, they arrived and installed two pink rescue buoys, one on each side of the river. It’s all about keeping people afloat when they are in distress and getting tired. Now, whoever is nearby will be able to help rescue the person,” he said, adding that it is an amazing initiative.
The volunteer rescue organisation’s mission is not only to save lives in South African waters but also to educate communities and evolve and extend its water-safety initiatives. It has three core drowning prevention programmes: water safety education, pink rescue buoys and survival swimming.
According to the NSRI’s website, since the project started in late 2017, over 1 800 buoys have been installed around the country with about 177 lives being saved.
“Placed strategically on signs at selected inland rivers, dams and beaches, these bright pink buoys act as a reminder to take care if there are no lifeguards on duty, and that in the event of someone getting into difficulty in the water, they can be used as emergency flotation until help arrives. It has signage showing how they should be used, as well as the NSRI’s emergency number and buoy identification number to identify the exact location of the emergency,” it read.
Andrew Ingram, former NSRI drowning prevention manager, now communications officer, said this bystander rescue equipment is crucial at non-bathing beaches due to possible delays in lifeguard response times. “This is why it’s important to swim at lifeguarded beaches and between the flags,” he said.
For more information about the Pink Rescue Buoys and other initiatives/programmes, visit the NSRI Facebook page or website at nsri.org.za
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