Goldfields Spirit Swimming Carnival part of Royal Life Saving WA anti-drowning initiatives

Working hard to address disproportionally high drowning statistics in non-metropolitan parts of the state by focusing attention on swimming and lifesaving programs for children in regional and remote areas, Royal Life Saving WA held its second annual Goldfields Spirit Swimming and Lifesaving Carnival in Kalgoorlie on Friday 31st March.

Staged at the Goldfields Oasis Aquatic Centre, the Carnival was made possible thanks to funding provided by Principal Community Partner BHP and saw 85 children from schools in Kalgoorlie and Kambalda take part in swimming races, lifesaving activities and giveaways.

Advising that important partnership with Royal Life Saving WA is one that is making a real difference in drowning prevention right across the state, BHP Head of Corporate Affairs WA, Meath Hammond stated “BHP is proud to have played a small part in Royal Life Saving’s bigger story through delivering vital programs to regional and vulnerable communities, training lifesavers and creating safer aquatic places for all Western Australians.”

 The interactive Carnival included swimming and relay races as well as lifesaving activities, and offered children an opportunity to meet and interact with students from other local schools.

Royal Life Saving WA Senior Manager Swimming and Water Safety Education, Trent Hotchkin says events like the Spirit Carnival are an important way to build swimming skills in regional communities, adding “people in regional WA face almost double the risk of drowning which is why learning to Swim and Survive is so vital in these areas and the single most important investment we can make as a community to prevent drowning.”

Royal Life Saving WA research shows that more than half (51.3%) of Western Australia’s drowning deaths happened outside the metro area in 2021/22, with people 1.8 times more likely to drown in regional and remote areas of the state.