Lifeguards being employed 'too late'

Some local councils are employing lifeguards too late in the year to prevent drownings, it was warned today.

Green Party deputy leader Mary White was speaking after a 20-year-old man became the latest victim in a week of drownings as temperatures soared in Ireland.

The man got into difficulty when swimming with friends at Pallas Lake, ten miles from Tullamore, Co Offaly. He is the fourth person to lose his life in the water this week.

Ms White said money needed to be made available to put lifeguards in place at Ireland’s busy swimming spots.

The Carlow/Kilkenny councillor claimed that some councils only employ lifeguards after July 1 – which she said was too late in some circumstances.

“I am concerned with the recent hot weather that many people go into the water where there are no lifeguards in place.

“During last week’s Bank Holiday, parts of the River Barrow in Co Carlow looked like a Mediterranean resort with hundreds of people using the river.

“If an emergency had arisen, there were no professionals on hand to assist,” she said.

With the warm weather set to continue Ms White fears a repeat of last week’s drowning tragedy in which a mother, daughter and son lost their lives in a tributary of the River Blackwater in Co Cork.

“With an average of 15 people drowned every month in Ireland, it is vital that financial support is given to increasing water safety and safeguarding swimmers and river users,” she said.