Life jackets have been distributed to sea-goers and jet ski riders as part of a joint campaign and proactive efforts to raise awareness about safety at sea conducted by the Coastguard Command and the Interior Ministry.
Multi-lingual brochures were also distributed as part of the initiative featuring awareness tips and guidelines to be adhered to as water activities increase during the summer holidays.
These include the necessity to continuously watch children around pools, on the coast, or at sea and the importance of wearing a life jacket and only swimming in designated spots. Safety requirements for using jet skies were also highlighted.
Earlier this week a 67-year-old Bahraini man drowned while swimming off the coast of Barbar. A few days earlier a 42-year-old Indian expatriate died after his vehicle plunged into the sea at Sitra and was unable to swim to safety.
The country witnessed seven fatal drowning tragedies in 2020 and five in 2021, alongside four non-fatal incidents in 2020 and one in 2021.
A tougher crackdown on unlicensed pools in Bahrain looks set to take place too. More surprise inspections and licensing regulations have been demanded by a municipal councillor who has reported incidents of severe allergic reactions suffered by swimmers due to strong chemicals being placed in the water.
The pool in question – located in Budaiya – allegedly caused rashes, headaches, shortness of breath and inflammation to several individuals on separate occasions.
Northern Municipal Councillor Mohammed Al Dossari told the GDN that ‘immediate action’ was needed to shut down unlicensed pools that failed to implement safety regulations.
“I was contacted by several people in my constituency after they suffered from multiple allergic reactions after swimming in this pool,” said Mr Al Dossari.
“We aren’t just worried about allergic reactions but the possible serious repercussions that could result in drownings.”
An official complaint was submitted through Tawasul to the Health Ministry by those impacted yesterday along with an official police report.
The GDN reported previously that a nationwide campaign has been launched by the Civil Defence General Directorate to ensure children remain safe at pools or at the sea.
The campaign aimed at ‘safe swimming’ began with inspections of swimming pools across the country.
“Our main concern is that these pools lack safety requirements as there is no life guard and the water quality isn’t good because it isn’t tested and they may not be using the chemicals correctly,” said Royal Life Saving Bahrain general manager Sam Rahman.
“This also creates an issue with inspections because if they aren’t registered then no one is going to know they exist to inspect them unless people are aware of them.”
According to Mr Rahman, private hire pools have the highest number of drowning incidents annually. He has called for a nationwide comprehensive awareness campaign along with an official website listing the registered pools that are implementing safety standards.
“We also are working to facilitate the inclusion of swimming into the national curriculum as more than 50 per cent of the population in Bahrain can’t swim,” he added. “This a terrifying statistic as an island-nation where everyone has access to water.”
reem@gdnmedia.bh
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