The Central Coast is set to host the first in a new series of vital rock fishing safety and skills programs, with Surf Life Saving NSW’s highly successful Gone Fishing program coming to Avoca Beach on July 19.
Delivered through funding support from the NSW Government, participants will be exposed to critical safety advice, provided resources, and will take home a free, top-of-the-line life jacket to keep them safe for future visits to the coastline.
It follows a sharp spike in rescues and fatalities related to rock fishing and rock platform-related recreation on the NSW coastline, with the past two seasons reporting jumps of 30% in rock-related coastal drownings (from 10 up to 13).
This will be the second time the Gone Fishing program has been delivered across the state, with the first series of coastal safety sessions during the 2022/23 Surf Life Saving season also featuring a workshop at Avoca Beach which was well attended.
“This is a multifaceted program that we’re very proud to deliver, with continued targeted education events and in-water safety demonstrations along the coastline,” SLSNSW CEO Steve Pearce said.
“It’s so important to reach our rock fishers with safety messages and the data behind the past couple of seasons really reiterates how valuable programs like Gone Fishing can be.
“You only have to look to the recent Easter long weekend where we had six drownings, all of which were rock fishers or rock platform related.”
SLSNSW Community Education Manager Anika Ferrari said she hoped the Central Coast would get behind the program in light of the data, as well as to foster a community of more capable and confident rock fishers.
“We’re really excited to bring Gone Fishing back to Avoca Beach after the success we had the first time around and as a Coastie myself I really want to see the community get behind this program,” she said.
“This is such an important topic – giving our rock fishers the tools to be safe along our coastline is invaluable given how unpredictable the ocean can be.
“I would love to see huge numbers at our first workshop for 2025.”
To register visit https://beachsafetyhub.org.au/coastal-safety-workshop/
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