Water safety experts warn about drownings in Northland ahead of summer

Waipū Cove Lifesaving club captain Kath Manning. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Overconfidence in swimming abilities and underestimating outdoor conditions has been attributed as the primary reason why 18 people drowned in Northland last year.

And Water Safety NZ chief executive Daniel Gerrard says, “The worst was yet to come.”

Figures obtained from Water Safety New Zealand show Northland recorded the highest number of deaths and contributed to nearly 20 per cent of a total of 94 lives lost in New Zealand waterways in 2022.

However, the country was expected to experience its most devastating year of drowning fatalities this year based on Water Safety New Zealand’s advanced predictive modelling.

The biggest challenge Gerrard felt was people - specifically middle-aged men - overestimating their ability to swim and adapt to external conditions.

Gerrard said data taken from past coronial and police reports, ACC, hospitalisations and surf lifesaving clubs found that males in their 30s and 40s accounted for 80 per cent of the total drowning deaths.

Water Safety NZ chief executive Daniel Gerrard.

Waipū Cove Surf Life Saving Club captain Kath Manning agreed with the findings. She said that such men were “risk takers” who unintentionally put their lives in jeopardy.

Although there have been no reports of death due to drowning at Waipū, last summer lifeguards had to rescue several people who went beyond the flagged territory of safe swimming.

“They found themselves in trouble by getting pulled in by strong currents, got panicky and certainly felt out of their depth.”

Manning’s colleague and Otamatea Aquatic swimming school instructor and owner Ellen Quirke said in her experience most adults believed that the swimming lessons they received at school ages ago would be “more than enough”.

“But you might be surprised at how your abilities get affected over the years, especially when you are off for a while.

“Early on their physicality might have made up for their lack of swimming knowledge but with time you realise how badly you fare with even the basic skills.”

Ellen Quirke, a champion swimmer who represented New Zealand in the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Photo / Tania Whyte

As a champion swimmer who represented Aotearoa in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, Quirke said the most important lesson she emphasised to all her students, both kids and adults, was the need to become a “confident swimmer”.

By her definition, a person would be considered as one when they were able to swim 200 metres nonstop and then “tread water” for two minutes – a measure that she believed should be doable by all kids when they reach 12 years of age.

Quirke felt the aquatic education offered in schools these days was more focused on “water safety rather than swimming competency”.

“So, they’ll be taught about doggie paddling, floating on backs, putting the life jackets on and how to help yourself when you fall off a boat and need to swim just 15 metres to the vessel.

“That’s great but what happens when you get caught in a rip and get swept a good few more metres away and there is no lifeguard at the beach like most places in New Zealand? You can’t expect to doggie paddle all the way.”

Quirke believed the reason most Northlanders weren’t getting the message, was because of a “bigger challenge”.

The sheer shortage of swimming pools in the region operating around the year was a major concern as it limited the ability to access lessons and aquatic education in a close environment – especially for rural communities.

With even more schools continuing to close their pools due to increasing costs, Quirke said they have started up Swim Kaipara Trust to improve the pool facilities at Otamatea High School.

Manning said as lifeguards they could only encourage people to make the right decisions such as not swimming alone and being careful at beaches with no lifeguards.

“If you do get into trouble, remember the three Rs. Relax, raise your hand and ride the rip. When in doubt, seek advice from either nearby lifeguards or locals.”

She encourages beach users and those wanting to cool themselves in the hot summer to visit www.safeswim.org.nz/ to make informed decisions on when and where to swim.

Avneesh Vincent is the crime and emergency services reporter at the Advocate. He was previously at the Gisborne Herald as the arts and environment reporter and is passionate about covering stories that can make a difference. He joined NZME in July 2023.