Editorial: Take care near the water this weekend
At last, we have a decent spell of good weather and it seems to put everybody in good humour.
With the June bank holiday weekend approaching, it’s inevitable that people will flock in their droves to lakes and coastal locations to make the most of the sunshine. And a county like Cavan certainly is blessed with many beautiful lakes but sadly none of them are patrolled by lifeguards.
Without fail, every year there is a prolonged spell of good weather or a heat wave, we also hear reports of drownings and tragedies at our lakes and waterways.
Who can forget Summer 2021 when five people drowned in Irish waters over a two-week period in July? Among them were Killian Casey (15) from Crosserlough who lost his life after he got into difficulty at Lough Sheelin and young mum Natasha Core (29) who died following an accident at Swan Lake in Lough Gowna. Two young lives, taken too soon.
Tragically, there have been, on average, 111 drownings every year in Ireland over the last decade.
The cost of providing lifeguards at popular swimming locations across County Cavan has previously been put at around €80,000 a year. That would include cover from 11am to 7pm daily for around 10 weeks in the summer period.
There have been repeated calls for lifeguards to be assigned to designated bathing areas in County Cavan. Were it only to save one life, it would be €80,000 well spent. It would also be an enormous asset to our tourism product for the county, which can struggle to compete with the attractions of coastal counties such as Sligo and Donegal.
Water Safety Ireland is the statutory body with responsibility for safety at bathing areas. Every year it runs outdoor swimming lessons at lakes around the county, though places have been limited in recent years due to a lack of qualified instructors – another post-Covid problem.
Parents are encouraged to seek out these courses and get their children to do them. Learning how to swim in a swimming pool – a controlled and supervised environment – is very different to learning how to swim in open water and adapt to the many factors weather and your environment may throw at you – from currents to reeds and sink holes.
The courses are usually advertised in our local news pages or indeed you can check out locations and dates on the Irish Water Safety website.
Teaching your children about water safety in general – or indeed reminding yourself about it – is also a good idea.
The ‘Be Summer Ready’ website has some good advice about water safety and all those involved in water activities should take time to read the material before venturing out on the water. It can be accessed at www.gov.ie/summerready
Of course, common sense should always apply. Don’t swim alone, try to swim within your depth and parallel to the shore; don’t swim for at least an hour after eating. If you are going out on a boat, make sure to wear a lifejacket or some sort of floatation device.
Never ever combine driving alcohol and swimming – alcohol is a contributing factor in around one in three drownings.
Familiarise yourself with your surroundings when swimming outdoors and make note of the location of the nearest ring buoy.
While technically we are not yet in ‘heatwave’ territory, we aren’t far off it and Irish people have a habit of making the most of any good weather as soon as it arrives.
The Met Éireann definition of a heatwave is five consecutive days of temperatures above 25C. The forecast on Monday of this week predicted temperatures of up to 24 degrees daily right through the weekend.
Apart from water safety, please take care on the roads, drink plenty of water and don’t forget the sunscreen. The last place anyone wants to spend their bank holiday weekend is in the Emergency Department.
While safety is the focus of our editorial this week, if you are visiting lakes and various picturesque areas of our county and country this weekend, please treat the environment with respect and take your litter home with you. Leave no trace!
Whatever your plans this weekend, enjoy it and stay safe!