Twelve local kids have spent the school holidays learning lifesaving skills as part of the first intake of the Outback Lifesavers program held at Parkes Aquatic Centre.
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The program has been developed by Parkes Shire Trainers, Nikki Thornhill and Christie Pisani in conjunction with Royal Lifesaving Society Australia (RLSSA) to provide children aged 10 to 16 with lifesaving survival and rescue skills.
The aim is to prevent instances of drowning in rural and remote communities.
Parkes Aquatic Centre Coordinator, Nikki Thornhill said the program was designed to increase water safety awareness and lifesaving skills among young people in the region who, statistically, are at a higher risk of drowning due to unpredictable nature of various aquatic environments they are exposed to and their involvement in high risk activities.
"The one-hour practical lessons, run across five consecutive days, each had a different focus including water safety awareness, resuscitation, first aid, spinal injury management, rescue techniques, recognising an emergency and team building," Nikki said.
Participants were trained by Parkes Aquatic Centre Lifeguards and Trainers over five days from January 6 to 12.
Six of the Outback Lifesaver participants went on to complete their bronze medallion.
Due to the success of the first intake of the program, Parkes Shire Lifeguards will run a second round of Outback Lifesavers from January 20 until January 24.
Anyone interested in enrolling their child is encouraged to contact Parkes Pool on 02 6862 6001.
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