August 17, 2006
By Melissa Hoffman
AS spring approaches, the City's emergency management services (EMS) is taking measures to prevent drownings which have been on the increase in recent years.
"Every year we lose a lot of children due to drowning. Last summer the average number of drownings per month was 20," says Malcolm Midgley, spokesperson for the EMS. According to Midgley, the islands of New Zealand and Hawaii launched major safety campaigns after reports of 20 drownings annually.
The onset of warmer weather and summer rainfall, also means conditions on the roads and public spaces become hazardous.
With heavy downpours, pedestrians and motorists need to be especially careful when crossing low-lying bridges that span rivers across the city.
Midgley warns about one such bridge near the Sunninghill Hospital in Sandton, where the Braamfontein Spruit and Jukskei River intersect with a bridge on Witkoppen Road.
Another danger is when people "attempt to cross a stormwater channel but then get washed into a river", says Midgley, explaining that three adults and two children drowned where the Kaalspruit crosses over a bridge in Ivory Park, just outside Midrand.
Public swimming pools open on 1 September, although you'd be forgiven for not heading for a swim to cool down just yet. Every year, the public swimming pools in Region E of the City of Johannesburg – Alexandra, Patterson Park in Norwood, Sydenham, and Zoo Lake – hold community outreach programmes.
One programme involved teaching young burn victims how to swim. Some children had their hands burnt off, and it was "a difficult task to teach someone with 90 percent burns how to swim," says Marius Trollip, superintendent at the Zoo Lake pool. In spite of the hardships these children face, Trollip says the programme, which ran for a week, went "remarkably well".
Swimming South Africa also runs a Learn to Swim programme to promote a healthy lifestyle, reduce drownings, provide a vital life skill, and just for fun. They can be contacted on 011 404 2480.
Safety tips from the City's EMS
- Drive slowly in wet weather and avoid crossing flooded bridges or roads;
- Stay vigilant near pools without covers and open water like rivers and lakes;
- When you're ready to switch off that electric blanket, instead of folding it just leave it flat on the bed and unplug it. This prevents damage to the cables;
- Disconnect the gas heater and use the cylinder for a gas braai; and
- Don't use flammable liquids to feed a braai fire, or any kind of fire.
The EMS's three-month winter-safety campaign, launched at the end of May this year, resulted in a drop of accidental fires by more than 25 percent, compared with last winter. Hopefully the success of that campaign will inspire a similar summer-safety campaign soon.
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