Silly season is upon us and the amount of people flocking to the beaches is going to increase tenfold. The learners from Colleen Glen Primary expressed their keenness on going to the beach over the festive season but were very afraid of the big waves.After going through the WaterWise PLAN with the learners, our PE WaterWise Instructor, Marcus Oshry, was able to ask them a few questions about the sea and what they would do in certain situations.Most of them knew about the lifeguards but didn’t understand why the flags were placed in specific areas on the beach. This was the perfect opportunity to teach them about RIP Currents and what they should be doing and shouldn’t be doing.After going through the PLAN and RIP Current Workshops, there were a lot of learners and teachers wanting to learn more. This is always positive as it shows that they really are interested and want to be safe out there.The Eastern Cape has already started to see the increase in drowning incidents over the last few weeks.With December heating up and more people traveling to the coast for the holidays, drowning incidents become a great danger. Parents drinking on the beaches and not looking after their children ... Children not understanding the strength and power of the sea as well as their parents not understanding the sea. We all need to be vigilant over this festive season and be sure to alert the lifeguards or the NSRI as soon as you see anyone in trouble.The best gift you could give anyone this Christmas, is the gift of life.The WaterWise Academy is proudly sponsored by TNPA.

Learners from Colleen Glen Primary about to learn how to do CPR.