Episode Notes

Beyond the Rescue: What One Rip Current Incident Teaches Us About Saving Lives

This episode features Sam Proffitt, Ocean Rescue Director for Wrightsville Beach, firefighter, paramedic, veteran lifeguard, researcher, and member of the International Drowning Researchers' Alliance (IDRA). His work bridges frontline rescue operations and drowning research, including studies on drowning care, responder mental heal...

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Eyes for Lives: Building the Next Generation of First Nations Lifeguards

What if one of the most effective ways to prevent drowning is not a new rescue technique, but helping people reconnect with culture, community, and the ocean?

In this episode of Deep Dive Into Water Safety, Bundjalung Saltwater People Brook Silvester and his son Zane join the program to discuss the work they are doing to crea...

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June 4, 2026: Dr David Szpilman: Drowning Is Preventable: What if one of the biggest barriers to preventing drowning isn't a lack of rescue skills, but how we think about drowning itself?

Physician, researcher, and drowning prevention pioneer Dr. David Szpilman joins Deep Dive Into Water Safety to discuss the science, data, and lifesaving strategies that have helped reshape drowning prevention around the...

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June 1, 2026: Dr Will Koon: Beyond Warning Signs: Rethinking Drowning Prevention in Hawaiʻi

Dr. Will Koon is a drowning prevention researcher with Royal Life Saving Australia whose work focuses on understanding who is drowning, why they are drowning, and how communities can reduce risk through better data and targeted interventions. He has been involved in Australia's National Water Safety Strategy and is par...

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David and Tia Samuel

In this episode of Deep Dive into Water Safety, Margaret Wright speaks with David and Tia Samuel from Brighton, England, about how surf lifesaving, family involvement, and early education are changing the way communities approach drowning prevention. David shares how Brighton Surf Life Saving Club grew into a major volunteer-driven organization and explains the success of t...

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March 3, 2026: Robin Baird, PhD Marine Mammal Researcher

Robin Baird is a marine biologist with the Cascadia Research Collective who has been studying dolphins and whales in Hawaiian waters since 1999. During this interview, he discussed how little scientific information previously existed about many nearshore species in Hawaiʻi and how long‑term research has helped improve understanding of marine mammal popu...

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Research, CPSC Warning, and Manufacturer Responsibility

Hanna Van Waart PhD  Exercise Physiologist at the University of Aukland discussed full face mask safety, her research and manufacturer’s responsibility

The research article, “Full-face snorkel masks increase the incidence of hypoxemia and hypercapnia during simulated snorkeling compared to conventional snorkels,” was published in D...

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April 8, 2026

This episode of Deep Dive into Water Safety explores a critical truth: drowning is not random, rare, or inevitable; it is a preventable public health crisis. Alissa Magrum, Executive Director of the National Drowning Prevention Alliance, will unpack why drowning continues to impact communities worldwide despite being largely preventable.

Alissa shares her deeply personal journey into drowning pr...

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Inside the Roundup: Drasko Bogdanovic and Dr. Justin Sempsrott on the Critical Minutes That Save Lives — “Micro Delays Matter”

This episode of Deep Dive Into Water Safety focused on what happens in the first minutes after a drowning rescue and why those moments can determine survival long before someone reaches a hospital.

Returning guests Drasko Bogdanovic and Dr. Justin Sempsrott ...

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April 26, 2026

From Rescue to Prevention: Ralph Goto on Snorkeling Safety in HawaiʻiUnderstanding the risks behind snorkeling incidents and the future of ocean safety through research, education, and lifeguard leadership

This episode explores the evolution of lifeguarding in Hawaiʻi and takes a deep dive into the growing concerns around snorkeling safety. Veteran ocean safety leader Ralph Goto former Chief of...

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May 5, 2026

Kia Maanu, Kia Ora! Stay Afloat, Stay Alive !

Mark Haimona is a leading Māori water safety educator and researcher from Aotearoa New Zealand whose work has helped reshape Indigenous drowning-prevention strategies through culturally grounded education and community engagement. His career has focused on moving beyond traditional Western lifeguarding models toward approaches that connect directly wit...

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Standardization of Practice and Lifeguards should be First Responders and Families should know Pushy Pushy Blowy Blowy Sparky Sparky

In this episode, internationally recognized experts Dr. Patrick Morgan Medical Director to His Majesty’s Coastguard. He has been a key contributor to advancing standardized drowning definitions and reporting frameworks, helping align global data and improve prevention stra...

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4.17.26 For the live show, Margaret catches up with outgoing Kauaʻi Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami, an avid waterman and surfer, on the collaborations and progress that the Kauaʻi Lifeguard Association has made in the past year. Says Kawakami about the visit that the Okinawan Lifeguards made to Kauaʻi: “The exchange of lifesaving knowledge and culture strengthens our ability to protect everyone enjoying Kaua...

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Resident not just visitors account for nearly half of ocean drownings in Hawaiʻi, about 49 percent, challenging one of the most common assumptions about who is at risk. Even more sobering: drowning remains the leading cause of death for Hawaiʻi’s children ages 1 to 15.

Allison Schaefers, a journalist with the Honolulu Star-Advertiser and a key member of the Hawaiʻi Water Safety Coalition, is helping cha...

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Dr Laura Trapani

The Safety Risks of Full-Face Snorkeling Masks, particularly for Children

This interview is based on research presented by Dr. Laura Trapani a pediatrician and clinical researcher affiliated with the IRCCS Burlo Garofolo children’s Hospital and the University of Trieste in Italy. Where her work is helping to reshape how we think about child safety in the water. Full-Face Snorkeling Mask...

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“Drowning Isn’t Inevitable It is Preventable.”  - Dr. Colleen Saunders

Dr. Colleen Saunders is a leading researcher in drowning prevention whose work is helping to reshape how we understand water safety on a global scale.

Her journey into this field didn’t begin in a laboratory it began in the ocean. She spent nearly two decades as a voluntary lifeguard at Big Bay in Cape Town, wh...

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2.15.26

Professor Rob Brander is an internationally recognized coastal geomorphologist and one of the world’s leading experts on rip currents and beach safety. His research has played a major role in reshaping scientific understanding of rip current behavior and how people respond when caught in them.

Professor Brander is based at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney, Australia, where he s...

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2.19.26

Taishi Otono is a respected leader in ocean safety and lifesaving in Okinawa, Japan, and an emerging international voice in collaborative drowning prevention. Through his work with the Okinawan lifesaving community, Otono has helped strengthen professional guard training, rescue operations, and cross-cultural partnerships aimed at improving coastal safety.

Okinawa shares many similarities with Hawaiʻ...

Episode Notes

Why aren’t lifeguards first responders? This interview is focusing on a part of aquatic safety that is often overlooked but critically important the psychological impact of critical incidents on lifeguards and aquatic professionals. This conversation is about evidence, responsibility, and the people who protect lives in and around the water and what it takes to protect them in return.

Lifeguards are rou...