The City of Cape Town has launched its beach safety plans ahead of the festive season and has deployed 680 lifeguards to beaches and swimming pools ahead of the tourism boom expected this summer.
This forms part of the deployment of 5,000 personnel across the metro.
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis launched the drowning prevention plan alongside Councillor Patricia van der Ross, mayoral committee member for services and health, at the Lifeguard Clubhouse on Clifton 4th beach on Monday.
As part of its drowning prevention campaign, the City is deploying 340 beach lifeguards and 343 swimming pool lifeguards.
Lifeguards will be on duty at 29 different beaches, tidal pools, stretches of coast, and all public swimming pools between 10am and 6pm daily.
Partners include Lifesaving Cape Town, with 14 clubs along the coast, and the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), which is on standby to make emergency deployments of rescue swimmers and vessels operating from eight base stations across the city.
The City’s Identikidz child safety project will be in full swing. Last summer, this initiative tagged more than 130,000 children.
Cleaning services have also been deployed to all beaches, scenic routes, and central business districts.
Cape Town’s anti-litter mascot, Bingo, will also be making various public appearances to encourage people to “bin it in the Bingo bin” and keep Cape Town clean for all to enjoy.
“Cape Town is expecting record numbers of visitors to our shores this festive season, bringing a welcome boost to our local economy and supporting tens of thousands of jobs.
"We are excited to welcome the world to our pristine beaches, where we will be pulling out all the stops to ensure a safe and enjoyable festive season. Visitors can expect well-trained lifeguards, an extensive child safety programme to prevent lost children, vehicle checkpoints, visible policing, and bolstered area cleaning services,” Mayor Hill-Lewis said.
He said the City has seen an improvement in drowning statistics over the past three years.
Fatal drownings were down 26% in the 2023/24 summer season when compared to the season before. Thirty non-fatal drownings, 14 fatal drownings and 80 rescues were recorded along the coast in the 2023/24 season. There were no fatal or non-fatal drownings at municipal swimming pools.
Councillor Van der Ross welcomed the improvement statistics but said one drowning is one too many.
“Even more heart-breaking is that all of the fatal drownings last season happened outside designated bathing areas, or during times when lifeguards were not on duty. Our lifeguards are dedicated professionals who play a crucial role in safeguarding beachgoers, but it is a shared responsibility. Please adhere to the rules, and support our lifeguards, so that we can ensure a safe and memorable beach experience for everyone,” Van der Ross said.
City safety operations will be coordinated from special Beach Joint Operational Centres (JOCs), reporting to the central Metropole Integrated JOC at the Traffic Management Centre (TMC) in Goodwood, as well as the SAPS Command Centre. Vehicle checkpoints will be in place on major routes to beaches, with officers clamping down on alcohol use and anti-social behaviour in public spaces.
The City wants to remind the public of four golden rules to be mindful of when in and around water:
- Always swim at a beach with lifeguards on duty, and between their red and yellow flags
- Do not leave children unsupervised in or around water
- Do not swim under the influence of alcohol
- Beware of rip currents. If you're caught in a current, try to stay calm and signal for help
robin.francke@iol.co.za
IOL