Easter Weekend and WW Academy
Well, if anyone was in doubt the beach season is definitely here! Good Friday! The water hit the mid 70’s this week and it’s suddenly full of fish. If you’re planning to go out in the Easter Weekend madness, please swim near a lifeguarded tower and stay far away from those rock jetties and piers. We’ve had really rough surf and strong rip currents so there are deep troughs and strong rips near the rocks and the sand everywhere underwater is uneven. Stay close to shore, assign a water watcher, don’t drink and swim, and swim alone. If you have non-swimmers or small children in your party make sure they’re in a life jacket. If you swim on the west end, especially the San Luis Pass, remember we won’t have a lifeguard presence out there until summertime.
Last year around this time, a group of people stood near the end of the rock groin at 37th street. They took turns removing the ring buoy and attached throw bag from the rescue box and throwing it to an imaginary victim in the water. The ring should be tossed over the head of the victim and gently pulled back to where the person’s head is. If you miss, you don’t take the time to stuff the rope back in the bag but coil it on one hand while stepping on the “bag end” of the rope. Your coils should go from the body out, so when you throw, they don’t cross over the other ropes and tangle. As in much rescue work, the simplest thing gets complicated if not done the same way each time. It’s all about eliminating variables, so when things inevitably go wrong, you have less on your plate.
We are kicking off our first virtual Wave Watcher Academy on the 17th. There’s an option for both virtual classes and in person. The virtual parts will be available Monday the 10th and people can mix and match online material starting then with in-person classes the week of the 17-22nd. They can certify in CPR and will became official “Tourist Ambassadors”. We cover beach topography and near shore bathymetry, rip and longshore currents, protocols for lost children, beach rules and ordinances, drowning events, dangerous marine life and treatments, and Galveston areas that are hazardous to swimmers. On the final day they’ll tour the beach, will be issued uniform shirts and hats, receive an official ID card, and we’ll finish up with a celebratory lunch together.
The Wave Watcher stats are entered into our database so we can keep track of preventative or enforcement actions. By tracking the stats for the lifeguards, beach park security program, Wave Watchers, and Park Staff we get a good indicator of the amount of work being done to protect our locals and tourists on the beach.
The Wave Watcher program has become an integral part of our family. Information is on our website, so let us know if you want to jump into the class.
Be safe out there!
