Every summer, RNLI lifeguards patrol more than 240 beaches across the UK and Channel Islands, keeping thousands of beachgoers safe. But how can we keep people safe as winter approaches?

A scheme being trialled on some of Cornwall’s busiest beaches could be the answer to a perennial problem.
The RNLI’s Community Lifesaving Equipment Pilot Scheme gives qualified lifeguards access to the equipment they need to save lives, even when they’re not on duty. Local people can also train in first aid and casualty care so that they too can access the equipment, putting lifesaving at the heart of the community. One person backing the scheme is surfer Dan Provost from Looe, who got into trouble on the beach in December last year. It’s the day before New Year’s Eve. The weather in north Cornwall is glorious and Newquay’s Fistral Beach is teeming with people making the most of the winter sunshine. As one of the best surfing beaches in Europe, Fistral attracts surfers from all over, all year round. And on this day, Dan is enjoying the water with his son Finley, his friend Christian, and Christian’s son Leo. ‘We’d been in the water for just over an hour. I was catching good waves,’ Dan recalls. ‘I caught a wave in and started paddling back out again. I saw this wave coming towards us and thought: “I’ll grab that.”’ Dan quickly turned and paddled to the wave and as it lifted him up on the board, he tried to get to his feet but went over the front of the board instead. As he surfaced, the wave caught the board and smashed it into his face – right in the eye. ‘At first I didn’t know what had happened. I thought I’d been hit by something like a jet ski,’ he remembers. ‘It was a hell of a wallop. I couldn’t see out of my right eye. I was where the white water was breaking and I felt like I was going to pass out, but I managed to hold it together.

‘Seeing the waves coming, I grabbed my board and started to come in. I thought I’d lost my eye to be honest.’ When they realised what had happened, Christian, Finley and Leo helped Dan out of the water and made their way up the beach to the lifeguard unit. Never off duty Also on the beach that day was RNLI Lifeguard Supervisor Lewis Timson. It was out of season and Lewis was off duty, but he had been surfing with his dad, a former lifeguard volunteer. ‘It was really nice and sunny, like a summer’s day. It was packed down there. Everybody was obviously off for the Christmas break,’ Lewis says. ‘I was near the lifeguard unit and a group of people came out the water and started walking up towards it. There were no lifeguards on the beach, but trying the unit was their first reaction. ‘I could see that one man in the group, Dan, was distressed and there was loads of blood on his face. Thanks to the equipment scheme, I was able to open up the lifeguard unit and treat Dan straight away.’ ‘It was a relief that Lewis was there’ ‘Just having that reassurance that I was lucky and that the board had just missed my eye was good to hear,’ says Dan. ‘It was a relief that Lewis was there. ‘He washed out my eye to remove all the sand and grit, washed the blood off my face, then bandaged my eye and head. He said that I needed to go to the minor injury unit because there were bits of fibreglass in my eye from my surfboard.’ Dan’s plans for New Year’s Eve were ruined. But 2 weeks later, his eye had fully healed and he was back surfing again. ‘I was very lucky and I’m very grateful for everything that Lewis
did for me. You don’t realise that somewhere as popular as Fistral, with such a big surfing name, doesn’t have lifeguards on the beach year round. It was a bit of a shock to me. But if there are people that regularly surf or work there who are trained to help others and have access to the lifeguard unit, then that’s brilliant.’ An all-season scheme The Community Lifesaving Equipment Pilot Scheme was developed to provide out-of-hours lifesaving cover on beaches for just such incidents. ‘Beaches can feel quite remote during the winter when there’s no lifeguard service, but there can still be a lot of people in the water, especially with wetsuit technology,’ Lewis explains. ‘The scheme is really for the wintertime, but also the evenings during the summer when no lifeguards are on duty.
‘All RNLI lifeguards who sign off duty at the end of the summer are kept on as volunteers. They’re all qualified and know how to use the lifesaving equipment that’s available. ‘Many of the lifeguards are around in the winter surfing anyway, or they work on or close to the beach. They have a code to access a key that’s in a key safe on the external wall of the lifeguard unit. ‘At Fistral we have an amazing facility, probably one of the best in the country. So that day I had access to a warm building with a phone, a hot shower and all the equipment that’s available to lifeguards when we’re on duty. Things like a full emergency responder bag, wetsuits, rescue boards, rescue tubes ... everything.’ Keeping the community involved ‘We have community lifesaving responders – people who aren’t qualified lifeguards but join as volunteers,’ Lewis adds. ‘These are people who are around the beach for much of the day during the winter, perhaps working in the surf schools or cafés or who have lifeguard qualifications.’ Responders follow the same casualty care training as RNLI lifeguards, bringing extra pairs of hands onto the beach and trained people around who can access the first aid kit. ‘The course gives responders all the skills they need to provide emergency care for all casualties until paramedics arrive, or they can be taken to hospital. So the scheme really gives the community ownership of keeping people safe as well,’ concludes Lewis. ‘It’s important to note that these community lifesaving responders do not get involved in rescuing people from the water – only qualified lifeguards should do this.’ If you see anyone in trouble in the water, call 999 or 112 and ask for the coastguard. Give as much detail as you can, including the location and the activity the person in trouble is doing. If you have something that floats or they can hold on to, throw it to them. Help them stay calm and encourage them to float. But don’t enter the water yourself. Too many people drown trying to save others. The pilot takes off The scheme started at Fistral Beach 3 years ago and is now running on 13 beaches around Newquay and up to Padstow. So far the rescue equipment has been mainly used by qualified lifeguards for water-based rescues out of hours. Area Lifesaving Manager Dickon Berriman is reassured by its progress so far. ‘There’s no doubt that the concept works and will be picked up wherever it’s relevant around the coast,’ he says. ‘With the popularity of surfing and the improvement and availability of equipment we are seeing a blurring of the seasons year on year. ‘We acknowledge that there are many unreported rescues and interventions carried out by surfers and other water users throughout the year. This often goes unnoticed but can also lead to further problems if those who go to help also get into trouble. This scheme is a step towards equipping rescuers with the right skills and equipment to help keep them safe while helping others.’
Words: Vicki Lovegrove-Fray
Photos: RNLI/Nathan Williams

What’s in an RNLI emergency responder bag?

1 Defibrillator and bag/ mask valve kit
2 Airway management equipment
3 Protection gloves and sterilising gel
4 Burns kit
5 Trauma dressings and tourniquets
6 Cold casualty treatment equipment
7 Casualty care check cards
8 Bodily fluid disposal kits
9 Medical drugs
10 Ambulance dressings
11 Fracture immobilisation straps
12 Gauze dressing
13 Oxygen