February 2019 (ROTM#122) North Cronulla, Sydney, NSW Australia

You go to the beach in summer, park your car and walk to the beach entry point. What do you see? Do you see the red and yellow flags and the people swimming between them? Do you see the ‘Danger No Swimming’ sign on the beach? Do you see the nice calm area of water behind it that doesn’t have many breaking waves and looks darker ? That’s the rip and it looks pretty inviting, which is why so many people often choose to swim in them.

 You really need to spend some time thinking about beach safety when you go the beach. That’s all it takes. You don’t cross the road without looking both ways and you should never go to any beach – patrolled or not – without spending a few minutes about thinking about where the flags and lifeguards are, whether the waves are big or not, and whether there’s any rips around (assuming you know how to stop them). I’ve been preaching this message for years because it’s simple: always Think About Beach Safety! So keep TABS when you go the beach!

 Surf Life Saving Australia has come up with a fantastic new rip current and beach safety campaign this summer in Australia called ‘The Think Line’ encouraging people to stop and think before getting in the water – stop to check for rips, look for other dangers and plan how to stay safe at beachsafe.org

Lots of people. Can you see the flags?