Volunteer Surf Lifesavers Have Been Cancelled for 2019/2020 Season
Published on 01 April 2020
Shoalhaven City Council would like to advise that ll patrols by volunteer surf lifesavers on NSW beaches have been cancelled for the remainder of the 2019/20 season.
On Saturday 21st March 2020 the NSW Government directed volunteer surf lifesavers and lifeguards to close beaches when there are large numbers of people present, in order to comply with the Government’s ban on mass gatherings in response to COVID-19.
On Tuesday 24th March 2020 the Federal and NSW Governments announced further closures of services and measures to restrict social gathering that would be enforced from midnight Wednesday 25th March 2020, and these changes have again informed what SLSNSW patrolling measures will be. These measures are already having an effect on the community.
Effective immediately, all patrols by volunteer surf lifesavers on NSW beaches will be cancelled for the
remainder of the 2019/20 season. This unprecedented decision has been made to protect the safety and
welfare of volunteer surf lifesavers from potential infection by the COVID-19 virus and to support the
Government’s position in discouraging large gatherings of people on beaches across NSW.
SLSNSW will attempt to maintain adequate lifesaving response capability along the NSW coastline through;
- Emergency Club Call Out Teams that are to be rescue ready for any emergency response and taskings;
- Enhanced Support Operations (inclusive of Duty Officers and Rescue Watercraft) that will provide a
roving visible presence ready to respond to emergency incidents;
- Continued Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) drone surveillance operations, with UAV pilots monitoring
beach conditions, marine creature activity and assisting with search and rescue operations. SLSNSW
UAV operators can work alone, adhering to social distancing guidelines, while providing very effective
beach and coastline surveillance; and
- The SLSNSW State Operations Centre (SurfCom) will continue to operate and coordinate all emergency
responses through the SLSNSW Emergency Response System. SurfCom will also continue to provide
radio and incident support to both Branch Support Operations and UAV surveillance operations.
Find out more on currently affected Council services by searching COVID-19 from our home page.