Kiama Council reminds our residents and visitors to use our patrolled beaches these school holidays.
Council lifeguards and volunteer lifesavers begin their patrol season on Saturday 24 September, marking the start of the spring school break.
Surf Beach will be patrolled seven days a week:
- 10am and 5.30pm on weekdays
- 10am to 4pm on weekends
Jones and Werri Beaches will be patrolled on weekends only from 10am to 4pm.
Beach patrols will increase when summer lifeguards begin work on 19 December.
Supervising Beach Lifeguard Craig Bowley said no matter your swimming skills and experience, the same rule applies to everyone: no flags means no swimming.
"We have some of the most beautiful beaches on the South Coast but we also have some of the most dangerous," Mr Bowley said.
"This includes South Bombo Beach, which is one of our most unsafe stretches of coast."
Kiama Council in partnership with Surf Lifesaving NSW and the NSW Government are providing an unprecedented level of water safety measures this patrol season.
This includes new Emergency Relay Beacons (ERBs) at drowning black spots: South Bombo Beach, Kendalls Beach and Blowhole Point.
In an emergency you can activate the beacon, which instantly connects you to the Surf Lifesaving NSW Operations Centre. A text message also alerts the nearest lifesaver or lifeguards.
SMART drumlines have also been deployed off our beaches and drones are also being used as part of the NSW Government Shark Mitigation Strategy.