Surf Life Saving Australia has released its Summer Coastal Drowning Report, which shows there were sadly 104 drowning deaths nationally across the summer season, with almost half occurring along the coastline.
The peak summer holiday periods, specifically between Christmas Eve to New Years Day and the Australia Day long weekend, were especially risky this summer recording 27% of summer coastal drowning deaths.
Fifty-one lives were tragically lost across the Australian coastline, each one with long lasting impacts to family and friends. Males, unpatrolled beaches, and rip currents were again highlighted as dominant risk factors.
This number, however, would have been far greater if not for the incredible efforts of Surf Life Saving services, who performed more than 1.31 million preventative actions and 5,500 rescues over the summer months.
