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ICT to dedicate $1.5 million to a lifeguard program

 

  • Board of Directors agrees to include $500,000 in the institutional budget over the next three years to finance measures to keep swimmers safe.
  • It also approves an agreement with the Red Cross for ₡150 million to hire lifeguards this year in Manuel Antonio, Ballena and Cocles-Manzanillo.
  •  129 people drowned in 2018 in Costa Rica’s rivers and coasts.

The Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT) will include $500,000 (five hundred thousand dollars) per year in its budget for 2020-2022 in an effort to set up a lifeguard program in the country’s most dangerous beaches in partnership with the Red Cross and the Costa Rican Firefighting Service.

In addition, the ICT’s Board of Directors approved a ₡150 million agreement on April 1 with the Costa Rican Red Cross to hire at least 20 lifeguards in the second half of the year in Manuel Antonio, Ballena and Cocles-Manzanillo. This program will be active from July to December of this year.

The announcement was made this Tuesday by the Minister of Tourism, Maria Amalia Revelo, at a press conference held at the Casa Presidencial following a meeting of the Council of Government.

“Devoting more resources to a lifeguard program will improve the capacity to respond to various incidents involving swimmers, actions that will have a direct impact on the international image that Costa Rica has as a safe tourist destination”, said Revelo, who is putting various measures into practice in order to reduce the number of deaths by drowning in the country’s rivers and coasts.

The amount approved, $1.5 million over the next three years, will allow for coverage of the highest-risk beaches along the country’s coasts, whose geomorphology represents a risk for those visiting them. Over the medium term, this investment will also allow ICT to work with local governments and the private sector to definitively establish this program in the country.

According to information from the Judicial Investigation Organization (OIJ), 129 people drowned in 2018, 54 of whom drowned in a river and 51 in the ocean, 10 of whom drowned in Jacó, which does have a budget for lifeguard services. Of these 129 deaths, 59 (46%) occurred in the province of Puntarenas, 19 (15%) in Guanacaste and 19 (15%) in Limón.

A study from the Universidad Hispanoamericana published in early 2019 confirmed that 2,981 people lost their lives in the ocean, a river, a pond or a pool between 1990 and 2014, or 124 per year, on average. Of these victims, 2,538 (85%) were male and 443 (15%) were female.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 372,000 people drown each year, making drowning one of the ten most prevalent causes of death among children and youth in every region. Because of this, WHO is calling for a considerable push in efforts and resources to prevent drownings and save lives.

In 2018, ICT placed signage on 100 beaches with information on rip tides. These beaches were selected on the basis of high attendance by Costa Ricans and foreigners, as well as their risk index.

Between 70-80% of tourists who visit Costa Rica participate in sun and beach activities.