When flash flooding hit the Northern Beaches on 4 July, Avalon Beach surf life saving club’s Nick and Jason jumped in head first.
Proving lifesavers are never truly off duty, their quick thinking and sound action in a high-pressure situation has since seen the pair awarded with surf life saving NSW’s rescue of the month for July 2022.
Having started their day assisting the SES in response to the weighting flood emergency in the Liverpool area, the Northern Beaches locals switched back to lifesaving mode to assist nearly 100 stranded vehicles.
From pulling people through car windows and carrying them to self-made evacuation points to escorting them through flood waters, including an elderly woman who had been swept off her feet into moving water; Nick and Jason’s rescue support played a huge role in lifesaving that day.
According to lifesaver Nick, the unique skillsets acquired by SLSNSW made a massive difference to a lot of people’s lives that day and over the weeks they volunteered.
“Without a doubt there would have been fatalities at some point,” he said.
Lifesavers have been posted to multiple flood emergencies over the past 12 months, with thousands of volunteers turning their backs to the ocean to face the burning issues within their communities.
While roadside flash flooding is far from the nature of a beach patrol during the summer, Jason also added their in-water skills are largely transferrable and said, “it really comes back to beach management skills.”