Another Long Weekend

[Torchwatch]

Two major drowning classes on holiday beaches are small children playing at the water's edge who unexpectedly step into the water and get washed away and young men who after a few drinks dare each other to go out deep.

Small children must be watched all the time on a beach even around the family picnic blanket as they stray. In one case in Norfolk UK a few years ago a brother and sister managed to drown before the picnic was laid out. I rescued a small boy who was swimming without parental supervision in water up to my chest. His parents had swum out and left him on the beach and didn't seem to care that he'd gone in, under and not come up again.

Young men unused to drinking may lose critcal judgement after only a couple of drinks on a beach. One may do something stupid like kick a ball out to sea and another may swim out to fetch it for a dare. When they see him struggling the other's may swim out to help and also get into difficulty.

In neither case would float vests have helped as no one expected either the small child or young men to enter the water. Parents are responsible for teaching their children to swim and must always supervise them on the beach even once they have become strong swimmers even if there is a lifeguard service.