Surf Life Saving Australia urges swimmers to ‘draw a line’ and think before swimming
Surf Live Saving Australia is urging swimmers to ‘draw a line’ in the sand and think about any risks and dangers before entering the water.
The new public safety campaign features Australians who have previously been caught in rips, and those who lost loved ones to rips, talking about their experiences.
Hi,
Great that you are creating more awareness of the dangers of rips,
BUT
your campaign lacks the practical component . Draw a diagram of a rip in the sand in your advert and simply explain it. Make what it looks like clear, so everyone looking at the sea can spot that dangerous, but inviting calm area. That’s not a difficult thing to do. Many people are visual learners, many using our beaches are young, inexperienced in the sea and many don’t have a good understanding of the English language. These are the ones who are dying.
Use your valuable funds on adverts that hit the mark. Please take this on board. You can ask people to look, but if they don’t know what to look for, they cannot see!
I look forward to your response, a diagram on a stand at the beach clearly isn’t enough.
Yours sincerely,
M Kelly
Everyone knows what a drawn line in the sand looks like, the imagery of a rip needs to become as second nature to everyone to see, as a line drawn in the sand. Spell it out!!! Or draw it out PLEASE !!!, Everyone needs to knows what a rip even looks like….
I totally agree with the above comments. The advertisement, while professional, misses the point. The number of immigrants losing their lives in the sea is a concern. The actual “line in the sand” is useless to them. Show photos of wave construction etc and tell them what to do IF caught in a rip.