MANILA, Philippines - In its aim to save lives and make the beaches of Zambales “drown-free,” the Zambales Resorts Owners Association (ZamROA) and the Philippine Life Saving Society (PLSS), sponsored by RP Energy and Zambales local government units, recently finished another round of its free Beach Lifeguard Training Course.
The program is the brainchild of Roger Bound, a founding member of ZamROA and a resort owner for the past 20 years, who had the idea of creating a provincial lifeguard system wherein local lifeguards would be trained to meet international standards.
Bound said he was grateful for the support of private institutions such as RP Energy and the provincial government of Zambales, since without their help the training would not have taken place.
RP Energy, for its part, believes that this is a worthwhile cause to support.
“Zambales is a tourist hot spot. And with this advocacy, RP Energy believes that more lives will be saved as we, together with ZamROA and PLSS, are currently training local lifeguards with the necessary tools and knowledge that meet international standards. While the beach is synonymous with having fun, it is safety that we need to prioritize, and never the other way around,” said Grant Smith, project manager of RP Energy.
An additional benefit of the program is that the volunteers, as part of their commitment to undertake 240 hours of community service in order to maintain their ranking, will be joining medical missions and will be educating residents in more remote locations on basic drown prevention techniques.
“Being able to see this idea come into fruition makes me very proud,” said Bound. “This summer, when we see an influx of tourists and visitors, we can boast that we now have certified lifeguards to make their vacation safe and enjoyable.’
The program officially kicked off in September last year and is expected to continue for another four years. It is being facilitated with the help of instructors from Surf Life Saving Australia.
Since the project began, around 30 would-be lifeguards have already been trained, and eventually, they hope to train up to 400 internationally certified lifeguards and have stations set up in most of the major beaches in Zambales.
Moreover, Smith said this initiative would provide an additional source of income to the local communities.
“We believe in progress and since Zambales has an abundance of natural resources, namely in the beaches, setting up lifeguard stations would promote job and livelihood opportunities, which is aligned with our vision of providing sustainable development to the communities we serve,” he added.
At the end of the course, all participants are expected to be knowledgeable in basic lifesaving and survival techniques, including training and certification in first-aid treatment. They are also expected to be familiar with standard water safety measures.