Surfers ‘de facto lifeguards’ at Strandhill beach while visitors ignore no-swim warnings

So many people are ignoring the swimming ban at Strandhill beach in Co Sligo that surf instructors are regularly involved in rescue operations at the popular seaside resort, according to locals.

While Strandhill is one of Ireland’s top surfing destinations, it has been designated as unsafe for swimming by Water Safety Ireland and as a result there are no lifeguards on duty.

Former lifeguard and swimming instructor Sinéad Maguire said there was a “deeply embedded fear” among local people who regularly make visitors aware of the dangers because they recall the loss of three teenage boys from the county who drowned there 25 years ago.

“People assume it’s safe for swimmers when they see the surfers out. But that is really not the case as the surfers have the buoyancy aid of the surfboards attached to them and they are on the surface of the water so it’s totally different,” said the Fine Gael councillor. She said surf instructors were acting as “de facto” lifeguards and regularly had to rescue people.

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“They provide an invaluable service. They will all tell you how many on a weekly basis they pull out of the water,” said Cllr Maguire.

While it was feared that having lifeguards would encourage swimming, she does not accept this is the case.

Melanie White founder of Rebelle Surf, a Strandhill-based surf school, estimated that she has been involved in seven rescues over the past two years, the most recent involving a father and daughter.

She believes the ban on swimming should remain but says lifeguards are needed at Strandhill. “We have beach wardens, we have [warning] signs, but people ignore signs.”

John Garvey a Strandhill native, surfer and former helm on the RNLI Sligo Lifeboat, believes the bylaw is not working and said lifeguards should be there to control where and when people can enter the water.

“Right now it is uncontrolled,” he said. “You could put up another 1,000 signs if you wished.”

Mr Garvey said that people who want to get into the water in the hot weather are going to the headlands, more dangerous locations with no access to ambulances, just to avoid being reprimanded.

He said the current regime means that “a six- or seven-year-old visiting from Mullingar whose parents buy him a body board in Aldi and who has borrowed a wetsuit” can get into the water.

“It makes absolutely no sense. It is an accident waiting to happen and it is only because of the local surf schools that we haven’t had many tragedies since the last one. They try to police the ban by putting beach wardens there. I watched those poor wardens getting verbally abused. Nobody is listening to them.”

Séamus McGoldrick from the Sligo Surf Experience school said there are several beaches safe for bathing within minutes of Strandhill’s main beach. He added that the focus should be on education.

Deputy chief executive of Water Safety Ireland Roger Sweeney said swimming was not permitted at Strandhill “for good reason”. While a popular beach for surfing, it had a history of frequent rescues, near drownings and fatalities including the teenagers swept out to sea on May 17th, 1998, “after being only waist high in the water”.

Mr Sweeney said people had a responsibility to take signage seriously and realise “that rip currents are dangerous at all times of the year”.

A Sligo County Council spokeswoman said it took its direction on safety from Water Safety Ireland who were the experts in this area. She said a beach warden had recently been appointed for Strandhill, subject to Garda vetting.

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