Coastal safety

With the long weekend upon us and a forecast of sunshine, many people will pack a bag and head to the beach. Whilst this is a great idea (and one many of the White Box team will also do), we encourage everyone to be safe and also be thankful for Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA), who keep a watchful eye over us.

A 2021 National Coastal Report by SLSA highlights the many great things they do and the risks of straying outside your comfort zone.

They have used some great infographics to condense a huge amount of data into bite sized portions. Clever use of the red and yellow colour palette adds extra visual significance.

Here are the key messages:

We were surprised that men, despite constituting only slightly over 50% of participation in coastal activities, make up 90% of drownings!

Participation activities

As expected, swimming and wading is the most prominent activity.

Coastal rescues

63% of rescues occurred away from SLS/lifeguards. That means they’re outside the flags, posing avoidable risk to all.

Coastal drownings

If you weren’t born in Australia and haven’t had the privilege of growing up near the water, be extra careful.

Coastal capability

Over 8k rescues last year with almost 50k members!

We’ll leave you with this very important image below. When faced with danger, having a plan and maintaining composure gives you a good shot at getting to safety. Louis mentioned that “as someone who was born overseas myself, this was all new to me when I started surfing but quickly became essential”.

Explore more of our data stories: