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Midlands Air Ambulance Charity
Image Caption: Liam Webb, critical care paramedic, Midlands Air Ambulance Charity
Midlands Air Ambulance Charity is reminding Shropshire residents of the importance of water safety this Drowning Prevention Week (14th – 21st June).
Led by the Royal Lifesaving Society, Drowning Prevention Week is one of the largest summer water safety campaigns across the UK and Ireland. Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, which covers Shropshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, West Midlands, Herefordshire and Staffordshire, is supporting the week and highlighting the importance of water safety education.
With open water areas such as River Severn presenting a particular risk, the charity is taking the opportunity to remind the public to be vigilant in and around water. In the last three years alone, the charity has been called out to 25 missions that involved open bodies of water in Shropshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, the three counties that the river runs through.
Liam Webb, critical care paramedic at Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, said: “During the summer months, it may be tempting to go for a dip or a swim in the River Severn. However, people who enter the water often don’t understand the dangers of the river and can get into difficulty as a result. Drowning Prevention Week provides an excellent opportunity for members of the public to familiarise themselves with water safety and highlight the importance for safety around water to their children.”
The charity recommends that the public consults The Water Safety Code* which gives essential and easy-to-remember information about how to stay safe in or near water and provides advice for what to do in an emergency, including:
Liam added: “Unfortunately, sometimes things do go wrong, so knowing how to perform CPR is a vital skill everyone should have. Midlands Air Ambulance Charity offers a variety of first aid courses at our Cosford airbase and charity headquarters in Shifnal which are available to anyone looking to learn lifesaving skills or refresh their previous training. Each session is led by experienced clinical professionals committed to providing practical knowledge and hands-on experience to save lives.”
To further improve public awareness and river safety around the River Severn, a new Wild Swimming Shrewsbury smart phone app has been developed to give swimmers and water sports enthusiasts real-time information on the safest times to enter the water. The app, which can be downloaded from Android and Apple app stores, is available during annual ‘bathing season’, which runs throughout 15th May – 30th September.
To find out more about Midlands Air Ambulance Charity’s first aid training courses, visit www.midlandsairambulance.com/education/first-aid-courses