As water activities are becoming more and more popular across the county, a local RNLI volunteer is offering advice on how to stay safe whilst enjoying the Fermanagh lakelands.

Practising water safety

Peter Scott is the Education and Community Water Safety Volunteer for the RNLI in the Fermanagh area. Speaking to The Impartial Reporter this week, he shared advice on practising water safety.

Firstly he advised that water users should always “pre-plan their activity”, making sure to consider the weather, their surroundings and the equipment among other things.

Highlighting the importance of wearing some form of personal flotation when out on the water, Peter said: “There are so many different types now suitable for different sports. There’s not much excuse for anyone going afloat without some sort of personal buoyancy.”

Commenting that the Council and Waterways Ireland do a lot to try and make the area safe, Peter says that he has a strong belief in personal responsibility, “for people to prepare themselves for going out, rather than expecting somebody else”.

“It sounds a bit brutal but if you’re going on the water you should be thinking of the worst case scenario and how you would deal with it,” he said.

Peter went on to give advice on what a person should do if they fell into water and weren’t wearing some form of personal flotation.

“Our advice is ‘float to live’. 65 per cent of people who end up in the water don’t actually intend on being there.

Cold water shock

“Cold water shock is one of the biggest problems at the moment. When you hit cold water, all of a sudden your body just seizes up. What we encourage people to learn to do is float.

“If you can get into the float position for 90 seconds, your sense comes back, you start to think more clearly and you can start to think about calling for help,” he said, adding: “They have what they call the silent scream. When somebody falls in the water, they might think they’re screaming but they’re not really. Most people start to splash about but the cold gets you tired very very quickly.”

Noting how open water swimming has become very popular recently, he advised those taking to the water, to always do so in company and to ensure that they are visible in the water.

“One of the big things with open water swimming is to be seen. Always use a day-glow float and preferably a day-glow swim hat as well. That’s very important,” said Peter.

He also advises those swimming in open water to acclimatise before they enter the water or as they enter the water, not to just jump in.

“And obviously to swim parallel to the shore, in their own depth because the bottom of the lake is not like a swimming pool, it’s not even.

“In the space of five metres, the bottom can go from being a metre deep to 20 metres deep and the water temperature changes accordingly.”

He went on to highlight the “invaluable” training courses that are taking place locally, organised by Fermanagh and Omagh District Council in partnership with the Police and Community Safety Partnership (PCSP), with Swim Ulster.

“Those are a great opportunity with top class coaches. Mo McCoy, who is a well-known long-distance swimmer is heading up those,” he said.

“The water is a fun place if treated with respect,” said Peter.

For more water safety advice visit rnli.org.