The recent drowning of father of two Otis Morrison at the Guapo Beach in Point Fortin has triggered calls for the establishment of a lifeguard post by his family.
However, president of the lifeguard branch of the National Union of Government and Federated Workers, Augustus Sylvester, says there are simply not enough registered lifeguards to accommodate an expansion.
Speaking with Guardian Media yesterday, Sylvester said recommendations were previously made for a lifeguard post at the beach, previously known as the Clifton Hill Beach. However, he said even if authorities heed their call now, staff shortages will eventually render the post useless.
“The lifeguard service right now cannot facilitate that Clifton Hill beach because right now we don’t have enough staff to man the present beach we have right now. Everything that could go wrong in the lifeguard service has been going wrong - the lifeguard service went to the Ministry of National Security in 2015 and no attention was and is being paid to the lifeguard service,” he said.
Sylvester said with less than 100 lifeguards currently in operation, it will take almost twice the amount to adequately staff lifeguard posts across the country. He added that the public has now been forced to pay the price for the personnel problem plaguing the service.
“Unless you are trained in that area, you should not venture to do any sort of contact with that person, throw something for that person, keep them at a safe distance. Unless you are trained in that area, you should not venture out to make contact with that person, otherwise, you can drown as well.”
Guardian Media attempted to contact National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds for a response to concerns raised by Sylvester but was unsuccessful up to press time.
Morris himself drowned after rescuing a young girl who had gotten into difficulty in the water while at the popular beach on Monday. In an interview with Guardian Media the day after, Morison’s mother Christine said her son would still be alive today had there been lifeguards on duty at the beach and called for lifeguards to be posted there.