Are you enjoying a beach holiday this Festive season? With the amount of drownings that took place at beaches across South-Africa in the last two weeks, it is extremely important to know how to keep yourself safe.

Safety tips for your beach holiday:

• Pay attention to signs: Look for beach warning flags and signs that indicate hazards, conditions, and rules like only swimming between two flags etc.
• Swim with a buddy: Never swim alone, and if you can, swim with a friend.
• Locate the lifeguards: Lifeguards can save lives, so never swim away from lifeguarded areas. Obey all instructions and orders from lifeguards.
• Avoid swimming at night: Avoid being in the water during darkness or twilight.
• Don’t swim if you’re bleeding: Don’t go in the water if you are bleeding from a wound.
• Know the depth of the water: Always pay attention to how deep you truly are in the water.
• Take swim lessons: Adults and children who can’t swim or are weak swimmers have the greatest risk of drowning in the ocean.
• Understand shore breaks:Shore breaks occur when waves break right on the shore rather than rolling gently onto the beach. They can be unpredictable and knock unsuspecting swimmers off their feet, potentially causing injury to the limbs, neck, and spine. Stay alert when you’re wading near the shoreline, and never turn your back to the incoming waves.
• Be prepared for jellyfish stings: All jellyfish have the capability to sting, though only some contain venom that can harm humans. But to be safe, avoid all jellyfish in the water, as well as those that have washed up on shore. The best way to treat a jellyfish sting is to rinse the affected area with vinegar, use tweezers to pluck out any visible tentacles, and soak the skin in hot (but not scalding) water for about 30 minutes.
• Never drink alcohol before or during swimming.
• Supervise children who are swimming or playing near the water.

What to do when you are in trouble:

• Know what to do in a rip current: Most beach rescues are prompted by rip currents, but not every beach has a lifeguard standing by ready to pull you to safety. Rip currents are ocean wave patterns that extend from the shore and past the wave break, and they can be dangerous if you don’t understand how to navigate them. If you feel yourself being pulled out to deeper water, don’t fight the current or swim against it. Instead, try to stay calm, swim parallel to the shore, and swim back to the beach at an angle.
• Stay calm: Don’t panic.
• Signal for help: You can try floating on your back with your feet first. Raise your right hand into the air and shout for help, to get the attention of the lifeguards or other swimmers.

Other beach tips:

• Protect yourself from the sun: Apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher before you go into the water, and reapply after lunch or if you’ve been swimming.
• Stay hydrated: The hot sun, salty sea, and physical activity can cause you to become dehydrated quickly.
• Leave shiny jewellery at home.