Lifesaving equipment available to swimmers: a way to prevent drowning?
Self-inflating ropes, boards, and buoys would allow for an incident response while emergency services wait for the arrival of emergency services.
Vilanova i la GeltrúRescue poles and ropes, self-inflating devices, floating boards... These tools can help us rescue a drowning person in the water. In fact, in some European countries they are already part of the public equipment available on beaches and lakes. "Just as we see fire extinguishers and defibrillators in our daily lives, we also need the resources to be able to act safely if we witness someone in trouble in the water," explains Ramsés Martí, an emergency medical nurse, lifeguard, and water safety expert. "Having these types of items in Catalan bathing areas could serve as a first response to a drowning while emergency services arrive," he explains.
This beginning of 2025 has been the darkest in terms of drownings in the last decade, With 25 fatalities on the Catalan coast at the end of July, Martí is committed to collaborating with local authorities to promote the installation of equipment that can help reduce these cases. "Having these tools in areas without lifeguards, outside of lifeguard hours, and in inland natural spaces is vital for providing a first response to an incident. This can make the difference between having to carry out a rescue or recover a body," he says.
In many cases, when someone is drowning, the response of bystanders is to try to save them, without the necessary equipment or skills. "We should never attempt a rescue if we're not trained, or if the situation is beyond our capabilities or the equipment we're carrying," Martí emphasizes, stressing that pulling a person out of the water is very difficult—even more so if they're unconscious—even if we know how to swim. He also remembers that the first step should always be to call emergency services.
Helping Safely
Once 112 has been called, there is certain equipment that can be used to buoy the victim. Among others, there are so-called "reaching devices" to provide help without having to enter the water directly. This category includes the rescue pole and the rescue rope. The former consists of an extendable pole—which can be over fifteen meters long—with a floating object at the end. There are also rescue ropes. Both systems allow the person to be pulled out of the water. "They could be kept inside a cabin that would be opened with a code provided by 112 once a call for help is made, as is already done in some countries," suggests the lifeguard.
On the other hand, there are self-inflating devices (similar to a buoy, but longer), which can be thrown at a distance or used by the user to enter the water, deploy them, and attach themselves to the victim. In fact, the Vilanova i la Geltrú Local Police already has these devices as part of their standard equipment.
For those rescues that require more direct intervention—in which the victim is unconscious or unable to hold onto a rope or pole on their own—Martí advocates rescue boards, which allow for swimming and incorporate a harness and GPS beacon. This system also allows the victim to be carried out of the water. Again, some countries already opt for this type of tool, such as Denmark, which has 500 deployed for public use. Martí explains that in Catalonia, some municipalities have also expressed interest in installing this type of device.
The expert insists that having this rescue equipment available to the public does not mean putting more people in danger: "If people see these rescue elements, it increases their responsibility, because it is a reminder that they should not forget the rules of self-protection when bathing," he argues. He adds: "Furthermore, if used, these floating elements would allow for safer intervention in a rescue."