Danger for tourists: 10% of organized beaches do not have lifeguards

At a time when tourism is one of the leading industries in Greece, it seems that the authorities do not care to offer visitors even basic services related to protecting their lives.

According to ethnos.gr, 10% of the country’s organized beaches do not have lifeguards during the two peak summer months of the tourist season, July and August, and in June the unemployment rate reaches 20%.

This statement was made by the President of the Union of Rescue Schools of Greece, Marios Myronakis, who stressed that such the situation applies not only to this year, but also to all previous years. He emphasizes that some municipalities are responsible for this, which every year systematically late with the start of tender procedures for the selection of a rescue companywhich will supervise in their area of ​​responsibility.

The municipalities have the opportunity to start procedures from August of the previous year so that the rescuers are at their posts next summer. However, indifference and negligence reach the point that officials “wake up” in May, June or even early Julyresulting in annual loss of human lives due to drowning.

Mr. Mironakis states: “Based on current legislation, the rescue season starts on June 1st and ends on September 30th. However, every year in some municipalities of the country there is a systematic obstruction of the start of procedures. They start recruiting rescuers in May, June or even early July, despite the fact that they are well aware that they could have done it much earlier. After all, the tender process (the choice of cooperation with a rescue company on a competitive basis) takes 2-3 months.

As a result, in many cases it turns out to be fruitless, and organized beaches remain without lifeguards. Each year, the coverage rate is 80% on June 1st, reaches 90% at the end of the month and stays there. It is worth noting that such delays are observed every year in the same municipalities of the country. As a result, every year Greece is in the news for quite a large number of drownings.

Characteristically, islands that attract thousands of tourists, such as Corfu, Kos and part of Kefalonia do not have lifeguards during the summer months. Adequate coverage exists in Attica, Thessaloniki and Halkidiki.

In terms of drowning cases, the President of the Association of Rescue Schools of Greece emphasizes that less than 15% occur in areas where lifeguards are present. The rest are registered on beaches that are not guarded by a lifeguard or those where there is a lifeguard, but after his hours of operation have ended.

“Where there is a lifeguard, drownings are rare. Last year, about 380 cases of drowning were reported in Greece. Of these, 48 occurred on the beach with a lifeguard. A certain percentage of them were caused by pathological causes of death of citizens on the beach, ”says Mr. Mironakis.

Currently, there are 800 rescue posts in Greece, and the total number of such in the rescue service is 1300 people.

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