November 25, 2024 • 6 mins
Talking about the summer ahead on the beaches of NZ. An how to keep safe.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
From the rugby field to the rotary shed. It's the
Country Sport Breakfast with Brian Kelly on Gold Sport.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Talking Surf Life Saving and I've just been looking at
some interesting stats on the website for Surf Life Saving
New Zealand. Last year, two hundred and forty two thousand,
two hundred and ninety nine hours were patrolled. There was
zero drownings between the flags. Eight hundred and ninety three
lives were saved and that was by something like four
(00:29):
three hundred and twenty nine lifeguards. They doing a marvelous
job on our beaches. Andy Kem joins us from Surf
Life Saving New Zealand.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Morning Andy, Good morning Brian.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
They're interesting stats really, that's a lot of patrol ours
two hundred and forty two thousand plus.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Yeah, it's a phenomenal effort from our amazing volunteers. It's
just seend in and your intro is four and at
four and a half thousand lifeguards which give up their
weekends and to patrol our beaches and keep people safe.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
And they do a hell of a job because there's
something like fifteen thousand killing meters of coastline, something like
two hundred and four beaches that they patrol. So is
it hard getting lifeguards to join up Surf Life Saving
New Zealand to do the jobs wherever it might be?
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Yeah, it is. It's volunteerism, and right across not just
in Surf Life Saving, but across the volunteer sector is changing.
People are time and poor and there's a lot going
on in people's lives. So we do a lot of
work to try and help reduce as much sort of
administration and sort of other issues which would prevent people
(01:41):
from volunteering, and just try and get them to do
the cool stuff which they like, which is giving a
stand between their toes and being involved in their communities
and helping people.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
I know that here in the Bay of Plenty. I've
been involved with the Surf Life Saving Awards for the
region for a couple of years now, and the one
thing I noticed about it is it really is a
family sort of sport, isn't it.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Yeah, absolutely, generations sort of through surf. But at the
same time we always want to encourage the new people
into the organization. When you're in we have a saying
or a motto which has been around for about twenty
twenty five years which is in it for life. And
that's not about you're sucked in it for life. That's
more about how people when you're in the stories of
(02:29):
people being oh my god, this this organization, this community
based organization and the sport is this most wonderful thing
to be involved in, which there's people which have been
in it for a long long time. But hopefully when
we attract new people that they realize how wonderful it
is to be involved.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Do you struggle for funding?
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Still, it's got a whole lot easier. In the last
sut of five years, for the first time ever we've
had central government funding. It's been sort of well well
documented and the media around how much money has sort
of started to come into surf Life Saving, which has
been a hunt. We've been around for one hundred and
fourteen years and only the last out of five years
have we started to receive some money from central government.
(03:12):
Local government, so your local councils, they fund services to
help us patrol beaches midweek, so we call it the
paid lifeguard service, so during the week days Monday to Friday,
and they will start soon in the sort of Bay
Plenty Corimandal areas. That's all funded through local government, so
(03:35):
that's been going around for a long long time. But yeah,
all of our volunteer services has never really received any funding.
But in the last five years we've been lucky enough
perhap central government sort of start to tip it in,
which and it covers about that sort of fifty sixty
percent of our costs. So we still are a charity.
We still need to go out and fundery through through
(03:57):
other means, but it's come a little bit easy. Yeah,
but then again, the volunteers are still giving up their
time for free. It's all the other sort of stuff
which is being paid for both by other fun raising.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
All of us have grown up, you know, with the
lessons swim between the flags and that stat that I
read from last year there was zero drownings between the flags.
If you adhere to that and that alone, if you
go to a beach, swim between the flags, you'll be okay,
won't you?
Speaker 1 (04:24):
We should be absolutely And I think that's that's the
hardest part we patrol. Yeah, there's there's thousands of kilometers
of coastline in New Zealand and we patrol ninety one locations.
We have Sidney four clubs. We always want to try
and add new locations, and then I think our biggest
the safety messages is people need to check a website
(04:45):
called safe Swim dot cod ines in and that shows
live data around beach conditions when the lifeguards are on,
when the lifeguards are off. And I think it's the
main thing. Swim at a patrolled or a lifeguarded beach.
You're far safer when you s at a at a
patrolled beach. And you know, we unfortunately has already been
a couple of or drowning this year at pr West
(05:09):
Coast of Auckland where that happened you know, after ours
during the weekday, where yeah, the conditions weren't great. So
it's sort of that it's at a lifeguards and volunteers
and there's only so much money from from local government
which can fund patrolled services, so that sort of comes. Yeah,
(05:29):
it's frustrating when when you know, it's frustrating and rare
unfortunate when people obviously drown And so that's why we're
just trying to push that cake that key message check
say swim, but at the same time, if in doubt,
stay are if you can't swim, and if you have
any doubts about the conditions, just don't go underwater. It's
(05:50):
not worth risking your life.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
You are absolutely right. Well, we could talk for hours
about this, but I think the saf life Saving guards
and the lifeguards around New Zealand, the boys and the
girls who are wonderful job Andy, and perhaps through the
season we can catch up with any other messages you
might have.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
Absolutely Brian, make sure everyone checks safe swim beaches and
patrols are starting to kick off since labor weekend, and
more and more are coming online, so I hope everyone
has a great and safe summer.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Good on you, Andy, Thank you so much for joining
us this morning. Eighty Kent, National life Saving manager for
Surf Life Saving New Zealand. Phenomenal hours two hundred and
forty two thousand, two hundred and ninety nine. Just last
year alone, fifteen thousand kilometers of coastline patrolled by four thy,
three hundred and twenty nine lifeguards. It's amazing. They do
a great job.
From the rugby field to the rotary shed. It's the
Country Sport Breakfast with Brian Kelly on Gold Sport.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Talking Surf Life Saving and I've just been looking at
some interesting stats on the website for Surf Life Saving
New Zealand. Last year, two hundred and forty two thousand,
two hundred and ninety nine hours were patrolled. There was
zero drownings between the flags. Eight hundred and ninety three
lives were saved and that was by something like four
(00:29):
three hundred and twenty nine lifeguards. They doing a marvelous
job on our beaches. Andy Kem joins us from Surf
Life Saving New Zealand.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Morning Andy, Good morning Brian.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
They're interesting stats really, that's a lot of patrol ours
two hundred and forty two thousand plus.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Yeah, it's a phenomenal effort from our amazing volunteers. It's
just seend in and your intro is four and at
four and a half thousand lifeguards which give up their
weekends and to patrol our beaches and keep people safe.
Speaker 2 (01:02):
And they do a hell of a job because there's
something like fifteen thousand killing meters of coastline, something like
two hundred and four beaches that they patrol. So is
it hard getting lifeguards to join up Surf Life Saving
New Zealand to do the jobs wherever it might be?
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Yeah, it is. It's volunteerism, and right across not just
in Surf Life Saving, but across the volunteer sector is changing.
People are time and poor and there's a lot going
on in people's lives. So we do a lot of
work to try and help reduce as much sort of
administration and sort of other issues which would prevent people
(01:41):
from volunteering, and just try and get them to do
the cool stuff which they like, which is giving a
stand between their toes and being involved in their communities
and helping people.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
I know that here in the Bay of Plenty. I've
been involved with the Surf Life Saving Awards for the
region for a couple of years now, and the one
thing I noticed about it is it really is a
family sort of sport, isn't it.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Yeah, absolutely, generations sort of through surf. But at the
same time we always want to encourage the new people
into the organization. When you're in we have a saying
or a motto which has been around for about twenty
twenty five years which is in it for life. And
that's not about you're sucked in it for life. That's
more about how people when you're in the stories of
(02:29):
people being oh my god, this this organization, this community
based organization and the sport is this most wonderful thing
to be involved in, which there's people which have been
in it for a long long time. But hopefully when
we attract new people that they realize how wonderful it
is to be involved.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Do you struggle for funding?
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Still, it's got a whole lot easier. In the last
sut of five years, for the first time ever we've
had central government funding. It's been sort of well well
documented and the media around how much money has sort
of started to come into surf Life Saving, which has
been a hunt. We've been around for one hundred and
fourteen years and only the last out of five years
have we started to receive some money from central government.
(03:12):
Local government, so your local councils, they fund services to
help us patrol beaches midweek, so we call it the
paid lifeguard service, so during the week days Monday to Friday,
and they will start soon in the sort of Bay
Plenty Corimandal areas. That's all funded through local government, so
(03:35):
that's been going around for a long long time. But yeah,
all of our volunteer services has never really received any funding.
But in the last five years we've been lucky enough
perhap central government sort of start to tip it in,
which and it covers about that sort of fifty sixty
percent of our costs. So we still are a charity.
We still need to go out and fundery through through
(03:57):
other means, but it's come a little bit easy. Yeah,
but then again, the volunteers are still giving up their
time for free. It's all the other sort of stuff
which is being paid for both by other fun raising.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
All of us have grown up, you know, with the
lessons swim between the flags and that stat that I
read from last year there was zero drownings between the flags.
If you adhere to that and that alone, if you
go to a beach, swim between the flags, you'll be okay,
won't you?
Speaker 1 (04:24):
We should be absolutely And I think that's that's the
hardest part we patrol. Yeah, there's there's thousands of kilometers
of coastline in New Zealand and we patrol ninety one locations.
We have Sidney four clubs. We always want to try
and add new locations, and then I think our biggest
the safety messages is people need to check a website
(04:45):
called safe Swim dot cod ines in and that shows
live data around beach conditions when the lifeguards are on,
when the lifeguards are off. And I think it's the
main thing. Swim at a patrolled or a lifeguarded beach.
You're far safer when you s at a at a
patrolled beach. And you know, we unfortunately has already been
a couple of or drowning this year at pr West
(05:09):
Coast of Auckland where that happened you know, after ours
during the weekday, where yeah, the conditions weren't great. So
it's sort of that it's at a lifeguards and volunteers
and there's only so much money from from local government
which can fund patrolled services, so that sort of comes. Yeah,
(05:29):
it's frustrating when when you know, it's frustrating and rare
unfortunate when people obviously drown And so that's why we're
just trying to push that cake that key message check
say swim, but at the same time, if in doubt,
stay are if you can't swim, and if you have
any doubts about the conditions, just don't go underwater. It's
(05:50):
not worth risking your life.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
You are absolutely right. Well, we could talk for hours
about this, but I think the saf life Saving guards
and the lifeguards around New Zealand, the boys and the
girls who are wonderful job Andy, and perhaps through the
season we can catch up with any other messages you
might have.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
Absolutely Brian, make sure everyone checks safe swim beaches and
patrols are starting to kick off since labor weekend, and
more and more are coming online, so I hope everyone
has a great and safe summer.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Good on you, Andy, Thank you so much for joining
us this morning. Eighty Kent, National life Saving manager for
Surf Life Saving New Zealand. Phenomenal hours two hundred and
forty two thousand, two hundred and ninety nine. Just last
year alone, fifteen thousand kilometers of coastline patrolled by four thy,
three hundred and twenty nine lifeguards. It's amazing. They do
a great job.
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