“Without jetskis, it’s really just body
retrieval..."
And as the top thirty-six men and eighteen
women whisk in and out of West Oz for this week’s Margaret River
Pro, community tensions boil.
Promises of increased water safety outside of the contest times
and zones fell short as Shire of Augusta Margaret River officials
continue to frustrate locals. The call for Hawaiian-style life
saving systems and resources have gone unanswered.
Seventy-five drownings were reported in AU last year. That
number isn’t expected to drop without additional support, some
say.
“Without jetskis, it’s really just body retrieval,” water rescue
trainer Shanan Worall said.
A host of high-class waves decorate Margaret’s edges: Main
break, of course, and the Box to the left; heavy Redgate and Boat
Ramps; Yallingup (push a little east wind on it, and it absolutely
rolls) alongside plenty of undercard waves.
It was the blackboard of former world number two Taj Burrow and
current number five Jack Robinson. Toss in the vineyards and
bespoke restaurants against the coastline, it’s an easy draw for
tourists to spread their cheddar.
A multiyear marketing plan of the Shire of Augusta-Margaret
River aims to increase travelers to the region to stimulate
regional commerce. After all, flowing cash makes everyone happy,
does it not? Who can blame them?
Apparently, locals. The Shire are pimps, they say, but mother
nature ain’t no tramp and they want to turn off the red light. Too
many bodies in the water, they say. Mix the relentless marketing
campaign with the annual WSL broadcast and you’ve got a perfect
recipe for breaks crusted in black rubber.
Unsafe.
There’s not much to do about it, either. While groups such as
the Margaret River Recreational Surfers maintain pressure on the
authorities to scratch the permits for the contest, a change is
unlikely as the WSL inked a deal securing the spot for another four
years.
But, hey, we all know the feeling of packing too much foam into
a break on any given three-foot swell. Whaddya gonna do?
The more immediate issue is the lack of promised support for
water safety. While the group Surf Life Saving WA is contracted to
patrol Rivermouth and a few other hotspots, they still lack the
resources for quick water rescues. With so many bodies bobbing
around in serious waves drownings should be expected.
Bec Sheedy-Ryan, a de-facto spokesperson for area surfers, says
the Shire can’t have it both ways. You can’t promote tourism but
fail to adequately protect the tourists.
“Nothing’s changed in terms of safety for the past 20 years.”
But “Come to our beautiful place—it’s notorious!”
Sheedy-Ryan concedes that the Shire allocated a little funding
over the past two years for rescue training and the installation of
a defibrillator at Mainbreak. (Da Fin Australia also threw in some
flippers for the cause.)
Still, she feels the government needs to bear more
responsibility for protecting the influx of surfers drawn to the
area.
“Look at the safety set up of the [WSL] contest. Alone, it
should be a guideline as to what is required from a duty of care
aspect for a notorious section of coastline that is heavily
promoted by the surfing world and the Department of Tourism WA,”
Sheedy-Ryan said.
It’s a fair question. Why are safety protocols, drones,
rescuers, and skis put into the lineup for WSL surfers but are
withdrawn after the final horn? After all, the WA government funds
the contest.
In defense, a state spokesman suggested that “beachgoers can
find a patrolled beach by visiting Surf Like Saving Australia’s
Beachsafe website.”
To me, that website will do as much good in preventing the
masses from entering the water as keeping a dog away from a tossed
frisbee.
It’s all economics, of course. Sure, Augusta-Margaret River
officials want to see everyone who paddles out paddles in, but
securing perpetual funds to do this is tough. The Marg’s coast is
long and the cost for professional rescuers and their trimmings is
hefty.
Maybe the Portuguese have an answer. The Association of Surf
Schools of Portugal recently banded together to provide training to
local surfers in a handful of municipalities. They’ve trained over
350 volunteers so far, right on the beach.
Participants learn rescue techniques with and without boards and
life support steps. AESP director Afonso Teixeira said, the
trainings “not only teach how to help drowning victims but how to
act in situations in which they may be in danger.”
It’s a good start.
Still, without skis, there’s only so much savin’ to be done in
Algarve or Margaret River or anywhere else.
But what say you? Should the Shire swing their advertising bucks
toward safety? How much responsibility should local governments
shoulder for keeping surfers afloat?