By Philippa Stevenson
HOT WATER BEACH -- The chance rescue of two tourists at a Coromandel beach where an English lawyer drowned last month has fuelled calls for upgraded lifeguard services at the popular visitor spot.
The appeals have come from the Englishman's sister, who survived the tragedy, and a spokesman for the overwhelmed Hot Water Beach Lifeguard Service, Chris Pollock.
Mr Pollock said that just over a week ago, an early evening training session for four high school students and two adults who made up the tiny volunteer rescue service turned into the real thing when the two visitors got into difficulties in the surf.
It was just luck that someone was on the beach to do the separate rescues of the Dutchman and the German, who were unaware of the swimming dangers.
Mr Pollock drew parallels between the safety needs of foreign tourists at the beach and the worldwide calls for protection for gorilla watchers in Uganda.
He said the Ugandan Government had accepted responsibility for the deaths of eight tourists, including two New Zealand women, at the hands of Rwandan Hutu rebels. "The New Zealand Government also needs to take responsibility for tourists it encourages to come here."
The chance rescues follow the drowning of 46-year-old Patrick Crawley at Hot Water Beach while swimming with his sister, Jane, on February 19.
In a moving account in today's New Zealand Herald of her older brother's last moments, Jane Crawley also pleads for there to be lifeguards at the beach during the tourist season.
The community of about 30 residents "should not be expected to take responsibility for the lives of the thousands of visitors that are lured to the area by the New Zealand Tourist Board," she says.
Mr Crawley, a senior partner in a Milton Keynes law firm, was also a musician and keen sportsman. Jane Crawley says he will be hugely missed by his long-standing girlfriend, his big circle of friends and his family.
She says she and her brother fell in love with New Zealand and he hoped to return next year. Instead, a memorial service will be held in the family's local church on June 4 "at which we will celebrate the life of this talented, enthusiastic, amusing and extremely kind man." Jane Crawley says she wants to thank James Blacklock and Toby Stone, who saved her life.
"In addition, I will always remember Stephanie Muir, the woman who stood beside me on the beach until it was dark and there was no hope of finding Patrick alive, then took me home."
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