Loving Our Local Heroes
Watching the Waves
Jeanne Topliss, a Senior Beach Lifeguard stationed at Fish Hoek Beach, loves interacting with the public and being involved in her passion – the ocean. “Each beach along our coastline is unique – at some beaches it can be easier to spot dangerous swimming areas while at others the danger zones may be more hidden,” says Jeanne. “That’s why visitors should only swim between the red and yellow flags on the beach – the lifeguards know their beaches, and this is the safest place to swim.”
“The best thing about what I do is keeping all the patrons of our beaches safe,” says Keenan Weavers, Senior Beach Lifeguard monitoring Melkbosstrand, Big Bay, Table View and Milnerton. “While it’s rewarding seeing people enjoying the safe swimming environment that we create, it’s frustrating to manage people who illegally drink alcohol at the beach and don’t adhere to the safety rules.”
Jeanne agrees: “We’re fortunate to know many of the locals that come to the beach regularly, and we’re able to keep a very close eye on them when they’re swimming, but managing the dangers of drinking and swimming is certainly a challenge, as is dealing with the many children that arrive at the beach without adult supervision.”
Spotting Danger
Tino Simmerie, the Field Manager based in False Bay, gets a huge sense of fulfillment through his work as a Shark Spotter – he enjoys helping others out and learning something new as he meets people, and addressing misconceptions about sharks and how the shark spotters operate. “We’re an NGO, not a government entity,” he says. “We’re community centred and our main goal is to mitigate the conflict between sharks and people as best we can.” He advises the public to use beaches where shark spotters, law enforcement and lifeguards operate. “This allows you to seek help easily if anything goes wrong. Also, educate yourself on the flag system we use and keen an eye on our flags – you can also follow our social media channels for updated on shark activity at the beaches we operate in.”
Nkosinathi Warren Makhanda is a spotter stationed at Monwabisi Beach, and he loves learning about the marine animals that live in False Bay and assisting beach goers. However, there are challenges involved. “Coming into the busy festive season, it’s tricky to reason with drunk beach goers who sometimes disrespect the spotters on duty,” he says. “At the end of the day, we’re here to provide a service to the public, but we also require their respect in order to do our jobs.” He recommends that beachgoers don’t swim, surf or dive when intoxicated or bleeding. “You’re always welcome to visit our huts at the beaches to learn more about the program.”
Shark Spotters Flag System
No flag = no spotter on duty.
White Flag (with a solid black shark) = shark in vicinity of water users (siren sounded) or after serious incident when beach is closed.
Red Flag (with solid white shark) = 1 hours after a sighting or if a shark is spotted but not near water users or if there is an increased risk of shark activity.
Black Flag (with shark outline) = poor spotting conditions in area where majority of water users are. No shark seen.
Green Flag (with shark outline) = good spotting conditions in area where majority of water users are. No shark seen.
Fighting Fires
Renaldo Duncan, a firefighter based at Sir Lowry’s Pass Fire Station, loves what he does. “Helping the communities prevent fire, accidents and injuries, and knowing that we make a difference, brings me great joy,” he says. “Just this morning we had a school visit and two of the kids were so scared to the point of tears, but when they left the had smiles and were educated in practicing fire safety.”
Warren Sam at the Goodwood Fire Station also enjoys making a difference in the lives of the community. “It’s incredibly rewarding to see their faces after we’ve saved their loved ones or properties,” he says, adding that the firefighters respond within three minutes maximum from receiving a call and are always challenged to be prepared.
Warren cautions that during the upcoming holidays, there’s a huge increase in vegetation fires due to strong winds and unsupervised children playing in the veld and leaving fires burning. Renaldo adds that fatal car crashes and drownings also pick up coming into the festive season, and advises the public to “Manage your braais, check the condition of your vehicle and pay extra attention when taking to the road.”
“Our best day at work is not running into a burning building, saving cats from trees or even just driving in a big red truck – it’s when we’re able to complete all our station duties and return to our families at the end of the shift, because that means our community was safe and fire prevention education is working,” says Renaldo.
You Otter Know
So, what should you do if you encounter a Cape Clawless Otter at one of our tidal pools, or a seal on one of our beaches, as we’ve seen happen this year? Here’s some advice from the City of Cape Town:
- Do not approach or try and get close to any marine and coastal wildlife. Their natural response will be to defend themselves and this may result in a bite
- Always keep a respectful distance between yourself and any wildlife to reduce stress on the wildlife. Move away if approached by wildlife
- Never try and touch, or pose with, any marine and coastal wildlife.
- Keep dogs under control by keeping them on a leash and well away from all wildlife at all times. Remove pets immediately from any place where coastal wildlife is present
- Never try and feed any marine and coastal wildlife
