Surf Life Saving news
A whopping 46 rescues were performed on Saturday 20th November by lifeguards around the Northern Region. Muriwai completed 19 rescues, Piha performed six rescues, while Raglan clocked the busiest day of all with 19 rescues and a further 3 assists.
especially in treacherous west coast conditions.
Raglan had an outgoing tide all day which increased the level of danger at their beach. Three swimmers were assisted in the morning after the flags had been moved multiple times because of changing conditions. The swimmers were unable to make their way back to shore, and had to be aided them back to shore by lifeguards.
The lifeguards then performed a mass rescue of five patients, all of whom had been caught in the unpredictable rips and a channel running parallel to a sand bar. A further 14 patients were rescued in a second mass rescue, which involved an IRB and two lifeguards with tubes continually picking patients up and dropping them back to the shore before returning out to pick up more.
Saturday’s events and multiple rescues are a timely reminder of the dangers of the surf environment and how quickly conditions can change. The message from all Patrol Captains is the importance of swimming in between the flags, especially in treacherous west coast conditions.