Lifeguards patrolling at Wainui Beach near Gisborne. Photo / Supplied SLSNZ
Lifeguards patrolling at Wainui Beach near Gisborne. Photo / Supplied SLSNZ
A bunch of festival partygoers were lucky to make their New Year's Eve celebrations after battling strong currents at Wainui Beach, in Gisborne.
Wainui Surf Lifesaving Club had their work cut for them this holiday period, as thousands of revellers descended on Gisborne for the annual Rhythm and Vines festival.
During their downtime, many festivalgoers took to the beach - causing great demand for lifeguards who had to factor in alcohol, hangovers and a strong rip into their patrols.
For off-duty Ngati Porou lifeguard Peter Boyd this meant sacrificing his surfing session to help save other swimmers on Saturday.
"My nephews and I went for a surf and then about 12pm the rip kind of 'turned on' - as we say in life guarding. It was a flash rip, that came on suddenly," he said.
"People were kind of just stepping into it and getting brought out to where we were surfing, so myself and my nephews knew they were in trouble and just started taking them back to shore."
Boyd, who has been a lifeguard for over 35 years, and his nephews helped save four people from the rip before Wainui SLSC patrols came on at 1pm.
"I was glad we were there. It's just what we do," he said.
"There is a saying in surf lifesaving, you are in it for life. It's just part of your make-up and you just respond to what is happening. It's just natural when you see people in trouble."
Wainui Surf Lifesaving Club had their work cut for them this holiday period, as thousands of revellers descended on Gisborne for the annual Rhythm and Vines festival. Photo / File
Along with rough conditions, Boyd said alcohol was also a concerning factor during the festival period.
"It's not a good look. You could see heaps of alcohol around and the other thing was the mess on the beach.
"They are in party mode and have a couple of cans of courage, and nek minnit they are showing off and get stuck in a rip. There is a little bit of that going on.
"Also, a lot of out-of-towners don't realise how dangerous Wainui can be. It has a lot of character, put it that way," he said.
Wainui SLSC life guarding director Belinda Slement said Boyd and other off-duty lifeguards made a "massive effort" to keep people safe on Saturday.
"The guys did amazing to be able to get them back in and it is a testament to when you are a lifeguard you are always a lifeguard, even when you are not on duty."
Slement, who was also at the beach on Saturday, said the rip has been causing problems for the past week.
"We've had quite a few rescues of people out of that rip," she said.
"It's especially concerning with the young partygoers who are tired and don't know how to spot a rip."
From 12.30pm, Slement said there were nine lifeguards patrolling the beach because there were so many people.
She said if people aren't quite sure of their depth and where they should swim, they should stay out of the water.
"Everything we've been doing this summer is about re-emphasising those key safety messages like; picking a beach where there is lifeguards, trying to stay between the flags, and when you do get caught in a rip just stay calm, put your hand up, and if in doubt stay out and stay within your depths," she said.
Last summer eight people lost their lives in drowning incidents that Water Safety New Zealand deemed "preventable".
And surf life saving officials fear more people will needlessly die at our beaches due to stretched resources and a lack of funding.
Matt Williams, Surf Life Saving Northern Region chief executive, said more than $9 million in additional funding was needed over the next three years for essential upgrades.
Williams cited population growth and a spread in holiday hotspots as factors driving pressures for more funding.
He said successive years of funding shortfalls were now having a "significant impact". And he said that made it difficult to deliver plans to expand services at surf hotspots.
"If we expand with the current resource we're going to stress the movement, we're going to stress the volunteers with additional hours. We need to be able to have a quantity of guards who are well trained . . . to provide the service."
A Government spokesperson confirmed talks were under way, regarding assistance needed by the service. This work was expected to be complete by mid-2019.
