Cape Town - As temperatures continue to rise and with summer on its way, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) has announced the launch of its free survival swimming lessons.
The initiative has returned for the 2022/23 summer season and will be free of charge.
Lessons have been returned to the Sea Point Pavilion municipal swimming pool after the extended winter break.
According to the NSRI, only 15% of South Africans can swim, and with the drowning statistics as high as they are, learning how to swim should be prioritised as an essential skill for all South Africans, especially children.
Here is a list of additional sites in and around the Western Cape where survival swimming lessons are offered:
“As we jump into the warmer season, our time spent in and around water increases, making it crucial to learn the basic skills of how to stay afloat should you find yourself in difficulty in the water. These lessons are important lifesaving skills that everyone should learn,” the NSRI said.
The organisation has also launched a new location this year at the Muizenberg municipal swimming pool, which will also be hosting survival swimming lessons.
“The Survival Swimming programme will kick off in time for the 2022 summer season, providing invaluable skills to the patrons of these swimming pools.
“The NSRI’s volunteer survival swimming instructors will be teaching adults and children the four basic skills of survival swimming: learning breath control, orientation, floating, and moving through water in the pool,” the NSRI said.
The lessons will commence from Saturdays from October 29 to December 3, and again from January 21 until March 4, 2023, at the Sea Point Pavilion and from November 12 until December 15, and again from January 15 until March 4, 2023, in Muizenberg.
Members of the public interested in volunteering as an instructor or administrator can contact the NSRI via email on [email protected].
Recently, the NSRI scooped an international award for its survival swimming centres it launched earlier this year.
The organisation won the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) award.
The first centre was launched in March in Riebeek-Kasteel in the Western Cape and the second in September in Tombo Village in the Eastern Cape.