THE Mildura and Wentworth regions have been identified as drowning blackspots, prompting the Royal Life Saving Society to tackle the problem ahead of summer.
The society is targeting the stretch of the Murray River between Mildura and the Riverland of South Australia, and developing a new water safety plan designed specifically to reduce the high drowning incidence in the area.
In the 10 years to 2020/21, 21 people drowned in the area, 19 of whom died in the Murray River.
More than half were within five kilometres of home when they died, and almost 30 per cent were aged between 18 and 24 years old. Almost all those who drowned were males.
A 2020-21 Life Saving Victoria Drowning Report revealed that across the year the state recorded its worst fatal drowning toll in more than 20 years.
The report showed that regional Victorians were almost twice as likely to drown as metropolitan residents, and half of all drowning deaths occurred in the person's own postcode.
Of those who drowned in the Murray River in the past decade, about 40 per cent had consumed alcohol, with the river identified as the No.1 river drowning blackspot in Australia.
There will be two opportunities for local residents to get involved in the development of the new water safety plan - an online water safety survey and a two-day roundtable to be held in Renmark on November 22 and 23.
Royal Life Saving-South Australia acting chief executive officer Jake Culkin said the water safety plan needed to reflect the realities of regional and inland communities.
“Regional communities, particularly inland locations, face unique challenges compared to metro and coastal locations,” Mr Culkin said.
“Inland waterways like the River Murray have completely different hazards, usage and activities occurring.
"As an example, houseboats are enormously popular on the Murray, which is very different to a city setting.
“We want to ensure that the community has oversight and ownership of activities to improve the safety of the people living in this area and its visitors.”
To help capture information about specific water safety issues in the region, residents have been invited to take part in a community survey on water safety.
Completing the survey, which is being run by Royal Life Saving, James Cook University and the University of New South Wales, will put participants into the draw for one of three $100 VISA cards.
The survey is available at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MPVLBJP.
To be eligible for the draw, residents must be aged 18 years or older and live within Murray River regions including Mildura, Buronga and Wentworth.
The Royal Life Saving Society has also invited agencies, organisations and individuals with an interest and/or responsibility for community and water safety in the region to participate in the two-day roundtable.
To express an interest in attending, complete the Expression of Interest Form available at www.royallifesaving.com.au.
The Expression of Interest process ends at close of business on Friday, November 10.
