NSRI’s top 10 water safety tips

The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) urges Zululanders to be safe near water this festive season.

Follow these tips:

1. Avoid alcohol while swimming or boating: You don’t drink and drive, so don’t drink and swim or boat.

2. Supervise children: Drowning is silent. Caregivers must stay alert near water.

3. Beware of currents: Swim only between lifeguard flags. If caught in a current, do not panic, float and swim to the side before swimming back to the beach.

4. Wear a life jacket: Choose a life jacket suited to your activity.

5. Use the NSRI SafeTRX app: It tracks boat journeys and alerts emergency contacts if you don’t return to shore on time.

6. Avoid fast-flowing rivers: These are extremely dangerous, so do not attempt to cross them on foot or in a car.

7. Learn survival swimming: master breath control, orientation in the water, floating, and propelling yourself.

8. Learn CPR: If a person is not breathing, start CPR by pushing hard and fast in the centre of their chest.

9. Use a kill switch on a boat: It cuts the engine if the operator is thrown overboard.

10. Know your emergency contacts: The NSRI’s Emergency Centre is 087 0949774. The general emergency number is 112 and is free.

Don’t have the ZO app? Download it to your Android or Apple device here:

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