Surf Life Saving drowning report: 360 lives lost in a decade and new approach needed
14 Mar, 2021 04:00 PM
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National beach and coastal safety report. Video / Surf Life Saving
In the past decade 360 people have ventured out to our beaches and never returned home - and sadly the number of people drowning continues to rise each year.
A new report out today reveals 42 people lost their lives on the coast last year, nearly a quarter of whom were out swimming or wading in the water.
The Surf Life Saving National Beach and Coastal Safety report found beach and coastal-related fatal drownings have climbed almost 20 per cent in the last five years with the country s 10-year average now almost 50 per cent greater than Australia s per capita.
Surf Life Saving drowning report: 360 lives lost in a decade and new approach needed
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Despite being in lockdown for part of 2020 New Zealand’s provisional drowning toll is only just below the five year average.
The provisional preventable drowning toll for 2020 is 74 (the five year average 2015 -2019 is 81). Drowning is the leading cause of recreational death and the third highest cause of accidental death in New Zealand.
“Every one of these preventable fatalities leaves a family and a community devastated,” says spokesperson Sheridan Bruce.
The COVID-19 level 4 lockdown ran between March 25 and April 27 with boaties ordered out of the water until level 2 on May 13. In 2020 Boating/Paddling fatalities are down at 10 from 19 in 2019, noting however that there’s also been a large increase in water related recreational sales as New Zealanders flocked to the water and enjoyed domestic tourism.