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Patrolling days

At NWSLSC, we have 6 patrolling groups. In each group, there are about 10 people with various levels of experience: some have their Bronze medallion, some have just First Aid and are in training for their bronze. Others have the Bronze medallion plus other awards, such as IRB crew, IRB driver, advanced rescusitation. There is also an assigned Patrol captain and vice-captain.

Volunteer surf lifesavers patrol every Sunday and public holiday. At our club, we are on an alternating roster. Sometimes we patrol once a month, while during busier periods with more public holidays, it is weekly (over easter period, christmas etc).

I joined the club in September 2021, where I did my bronze with NWSLSC. It seems like I've been doing it forever. For the past two seasons, I was patrolling with Patrol team #3. I improved skills a lot and met some amazing people while on this patrol. However, by the end of last season, I was feeling like my growth as a lifesaver was not improving as much as I would like. Therefore, I asked if I could swap patrols. This season, I joined Patrol team #1.

On this patrol, I feel like I get more opportunities to perform rescues, practice my First Aid skills and also radio and hand-signals. This is owing to our patrol captains; Pat and Damo who always push the rest of us to do things. For example, Pat handed me a radio, told me to head to Puckeys to check out the surf, and perform a radio check. In my previous patrol, the Captain or Vice captain would just do it themselves, so I was never confident in speaking over the radio or in performing hand signals.

Below is a recount of some highlights on each patrol.

2023/24 season

24 September 2023​

Today was our first patrol of the season. Being the long weekend, with 30 degree weather, it was busy! Very busy in fact, I performed a rescue in between the flags! The rescue occurred very spontaneously. We were adjusting the tent, because the winds had picked up. Then all of a sudden, someone was requesting help. Without hesitation, I ran into the surf to grab him with the rescue tube. The rescue went very well. Afterwards, I received very positive feedback from my patrol captain. He made me realise that the area that I need to work on is my communication. I should've signalled to the patrol captain/vice captain that I was going out for a rescue. Nevertheless, they had their eyes on me the whole time, which made me feel very supported.

Not long after, I was checking Puckey's beach to get people out of the surf. This beach is super hazardous, with a lot of reefs and permanent rips. Often, we find that travellers will swim there as they have very little knowledge of "swimming between the flags." Sometimes I need to remind myself that they may just lack the education on this basic "swim between the flags" concept. A team member and I went walking ~200 m north from where we parked the ATV. All of a sudden, we caught eye of a few people caught in a rip in the open ocean.

My adrenaline kicked in because we forgot to take a tube with us. I sprinted back to the ATV to grab a tube and then immediately I jumped in after them. Turns out they didn't need me after that time as someone from the public helped out. That situation could have been a lot worse, so now this is a new learning experience for me: always take a rescue tube everywhere you go.

22 October 2023​

Second patrol of the season, and it went off without a hitch. I headed down to North Gong Beach at 8.15 am and even at this time, I struggled to find a parking. This is one thing that I really dislike about North Wollongong - it is so busy all the time! But it is also the reason why I love it so much - there are always people around to talk to and learn from.

We set the beach up by 9 am, and the day was quite breezy. The temperature was about 26 degrees, with a rising tide. The wave height was ~3-4 ft and very rough. Nevertheless, we did not undergo any rescues........ Saying that, I did rescue an umbrella as it flew away from it's owner at Puckeys Beach.

Despite the rough conditions, I spent some time in the surf, swimming and paddling during the patrol. At the end, we had a debrief; which is something that we lacked in the previous patrol. I am starting to enjoy patrolling again. Last season, I was really starting to dislike it because I felt like I wasn't supported as much as I liked.

2022-2023 season

My list of patrols this season:

  • Mon 03/10/2022: 12:45 - 17:00
  • Sun 9/10/2022 12:45 - 17:00
  • Sun 16/10/2022 12:45 - 17:00
  • Sun 20/11/2022 08:45 - 13:30
  • Sun 27/11/2022 12:45 - 16:00
  • Sun 08/01/2023 08:45 - 13:30
  • Sun 15/01/2023 13:15 - 18:00
  • Thu 26/01/2023 13:15 - 18:00
  • Sun 12/02/2023 08:45 - 13:30
  • Sun 05/03/2023 13:15 - 18:00
  • Sun 26/03/2023 08:45 - 13:30
  • Sun 16/4/2023 08:45-13:00
  • Sun 25/4/2023 8:45-13:00

Note: all the dates in bold are the ones that I have substituted for other people.