6 minute read
EYES IN THE SKY AT HEROLDS BAY
We chatted to the team behind the Beach Safety Camera installation at Herolds Bay on the Garden Route. This innovation has proved invaluable as an early warning system when water users get into trouble. By Wendy Maritz
ONE THING THAT HAS become apparent about NSRI’s Drowning Prevention team is that they’re able to take an innovative idea and make it happen. Their Beach Safety Camera project is a case in point. Starting with Strand, cameras are now present and monitored at sites along the Western Cape and Garden Route, including Blouberg, Kleinmond, Buffels Bay, Herolds Bay and Central Beach in Plett.
‘The Herolds Bay set-up is a first for the NSRI, as it was driven by the community, and is monitored by a small group of volunteers,’ explains Drowning Prevention manager Andrew Ingram. NSRI Wilderness station commander Mike Vonk and Ken Field from the Herolds Bay Ratepayers’ Association recognised the need for more visible safety on the beach, which is a spot favoured by holidaymakers and locals. Its gorgeous stretch of sheltered coast make it ideal for swimming, snorkelling, exploring and surfing.
Both Mike and Ken recognise that the beach has its dangers. ‘It’s a high-risk site. ‘There’s a rip on the eastern side of the bay, where people get into trouble,’ Mike says. ‘We’ve been working closely with Andrew and the Drowning Prevention team for a while now,’ he continues, ‘and the first thing we did was get Pink Rescue Buoys installed on the beach.’ Andrew had shared the successes of the Beach Safety Cameras at Strand and Blouberg with Mike, who realised Herolds Bay has an ideal geography for such a camera. ‘It’s a large bay with steep sides, so any number of elevated structures – houses, poles and so forth – would work for a camera site.’
The community in this settlement is proactive and highly invested in keeping the beach and waters users safe. While NSRI Wilderness is the primary responder to emergency callouts in Herolds Bay, having a crew in the town would cut out response time considerably. A drowning in progress needs to be attended to immediately. And an early warning system, which the camera would provide, would be the answer.
‘The Ratepayers’ Association was the natural place to start, and this is where Ken jumped in,’ Mike says. ‘They had already been instrumental in raising funds for a JetRIB and organising a garage where we could house it. We have a group of volunteers who prepare the JetRIB for launch when the need arises, so that trained NSRI crew can go out immediately. Essentially, it’s a satellite station, supported by trained members of the public who might not be able to commit full time to the NSRI but who assist the trained volunteers. They critical ly help to improve our response times to launch in an emergency.’
Mike makes special mention of resident Dale Irvin, who has, on a number of occasions, pulled people out of the water and was a recipient of a Pink Rescue Buoy Award. The Irvin family donated the funds for the JetRIB, named V’s Rescuer.
‘Herolds Bay is blessed with a highly motivated community. We’re well covered with Pink Rescue Buoys, which are taken care of and serviced; we have the JetRIB and seasonal lifeguards. And so a camera became the next part of our drowning prevention solution.’
The camera was installed in September last year and proved invaluable over the season. ‘The camera itself is situated centrally in the bay and covers a wide area: from two tidal pools to known areas where there are regular rips. It routinely pans across the bay and the eastern side along the headland.
The camera monitoring team is made up of volunteers who, over the season, were in constant communication with the lifeguards. ‘This was critical,’ Mike says. ‘We are looking for more people to monitor the cameras. There are folk who might want to become involved, but not necessarily as sea-going crew or in a rescue capacity. So the camera project in Herolds Bay might be a perfect way for them to make a difference.’
Wilderness and Herold’s Bay crews conducted dye experiments to show how the rip currents form and flow.
The camera itself, Mike says, is quite something. ‘The quality has blown us away, especially its early-evening and night views.’ Station 2 (Bakoven) volunteer and independent contractor Jason Kampel is the fundi behind assembling these built-for-purpose cameras. ‘The set-up consists of a PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) camera and an overview camera, and the system was installed on a home in Herolds Bay with a high elevation and a good view,’ Jason explains. ‘It has a 180-degree field of view and comes with a video management system that allows all users to access the camera, with a stream available to the EOC at Head Office. It’s a high-resolution camera and there’s even a little wiper on it to clean it,’ he adds.
The camera management system records the user history, so every action is logged and recorded, along with the details of the person taking that action. It also has privacy masking and will pixelate if the camera pans to an area out of its intended range.
Ken, who was instrumental in spearheading the fundraising drive for the camera and continues his efforts as regards its monthly maintenance, says drowning prevention is critical. ‘The rips here are a big problem. And there are visitors to Herolds Bay, including groups of school children, throughout the year. The rips are powerful near the rocks and when the surf’s up, waves average 3.5m but can get as high as 4-5m. It’s not uncommon for residents to pull up to four people out of the water at a time.’ That’s why he leapt at the suggestion to install the camera, which has been funded largely from donations.
‘We do have a bunch of great, enthusiastic camera watchers, supported by the EOC, and it’s working out well. They’re able to communicate with the guys on the beach and function as an early warning system.’
Numbers in Herolds Bay swell from 700 to 3 500 in season, and because of visible beach safety efforts, people feel safer. Visitors wouldn’t know where the rips are, but with the lifeguards on duty, the Pink Rescue Buoys in place, a total ban on alcohol on the beach, and the camera keeping a lookout from on high, there were no casualties at Herolds Bay this season.
Mike, Ken and the community wish to keep it that way. Herolds Bay has been given Blue Flag Beach status, and it’s a real jewel in the heart of the Garden Route.
➤ If you’re able to support the beach camera project or wish to become a volunteer camera monitor, mail andrewi@searescue. org.za. Please note: Background checks are conducted on all our volunteer crew.
