Today, Thursday 25^th July, is World Drowning Prevention Day (WDPD) organised by the World Health Organization (WHO), and did you know that simply mimicking a starfish can help you stay afloat in the water during times of distress?

To mark World Drowning Prevention Day, the region’s water safety lead, Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service, along with representatives from organisations across the region, have come together to highlight the dangers of the water and show how to stay safe if you get into difficulty.

Floating like a starfish can help you stay calm in a crisis and buy you essential time before rescuers arrive.

Showing the ultimate symbol for World Drowning Prevention Day, representatives from eleven Tyne and Wear organisations joined hands to form a unified floating circle at Cullercoats Bay, North Tyneside.

Statistics from the World Health Organisation, the campaign lead for WDPD, show that nearly a quarter of a million people lose their lives each year to drowning, and almost 82,000 of them are children aged between 1 and 14 years.

Tommy Richardson, TWFRS Water Safety Lead, said: “For any parent or family member, the issue of drowning is heart-wrenching, as a large majority of the time the source of the accident or incident is preventable.

“This year’s campaign theme is ‘Anyone can drown, no one should’ and ‘Seconds can save life.’, and we wanted to mark the occasion by showing just how powerful remembering to float like a starfish in a crisis can save valuable seconds and essentially save your life.

“Please spare a moment this World Drowning Prevention Day to learn the Royal National Lifeboat Institution’s (RNLI) essential water safety advice that could be the defining factor that saves your life or the life of a loved one.”

Follow these six safety tips to help stay safe in the water:

1. Be prepared.
2. Never go alone.
3. Acclimatise slowly to avoid cold water shock.
4. Always be seen.
5. Stay within your depth.
6. Float to Live by making a starfish shape in the water.

Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service advise members of the public to always remember to call 999 when reporting emergency incidents on land and ask for the fire service, or call 112 and ask for the coastguard if you get into difficulty or see someone else in trouble along the coast.

In line with World Drowning Prevention Day, TWFRS, alongside its partners, have organised a free water safety event on Newcastle Quayside (near the Millennium Bridge) on Sunday 28^th July between 11 am and 3 pm.

People, young and old, will be able to have a tour of a fire appliance and watch a water rescue demonstration on the River Tyne by our fireboat team.

There will also be an opportunity to chat with colleagues and partners about all aspects of water safety.

A big thank you goes to all of the partners who joined TWFRS for the Float to Live photograph, including:

RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution); RLSS (Royal Life Saving Society UK); Northumbria Police Marine Unit; North East Ambulance Service – HART Team; Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade; Northumberland Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority; Marine Management Organisation; Dove Marine Laboratory School of Natural and Environmental Sciences at Newcastle University; Panama Open Water Swimming Club members; and Cullerfornians swimming club.