Residents and holiday makers at a number of popular Central Coast swimming spots will be a little safer following the installation of new lifesaving technology at The Entrance Channel, Budgewoi and Pearl Beach.
When every second can mean the difference between life and death, new Emergency Response Beacons (ERBs) will give visitors at unpatrolled beaches a link to lifesaving services during emergencies.
ERBs means someone who might witness a coastal emergency can connect directly to the Surf Life Saving NSW State Operations Centre (SOC) where the nearest lifesavers, lifeguards or other emergency service can be notified and activated to respond.
A camera fitted to the ERB can be remotely monitored by the SOC to provide operators with information about the incident which can be shared with the local surf life saving team to respond including deploying jet skis, inflatable rescue boats, volunteer callout teams from nearby surf clubs, lifeguards, helicopter and even drone services.
The life-saving devices are solar powered and connect to the 4G network which means they are online and powered up when needed.
Member for Gosford Liesl Tesch said technology like this ensured beach users across the Central Coast were as safe as possible.
“Local community members are all too familiar with the devastating impacts of drowning incidents at Pearl Beach and I am happy to see action taken to protect the community in our high-risk beach blackspots,” Tesch said.
Member for the Entrance David Mehan said lifesavers and lifeguards can’t be everywhere at once.
“These emergency beacons are about expanding the reach and making every effort to protect swimmers at unpatrolled locations,” he said.
Surf Life Saving Central Coast President Matt Slattery said the newly installed ERBs will be a great support to volunteer lifesavers on the Central Coast.
“The technology allows us to respond sooner to incidents and emergencies and will help us to save many more lives,” he said.
Minister for Emergency Services Jihad Dib said it was important to understand local conditions as they can change quickly.
“This is why it is always important to swim safely and within your abilities,” he said.
“But when things do go wrong, we want to make sure people on our beaches and our emergency services are best equipped to respond.
“These new beacons provide an extra set of eyes on the beach and will help live savers respond and save lives, whether it’s swimming, rock fishing or boating.”
Source:
NSW Government