boating & watercraft drowning deaths in...
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Boating & Watercraft drowning deaths in AustraliaA 10 year analysis
13th Australasian Injury Prevention & Safety Promotion Conference
November 2017
Stacey Pidgeon, Alison Mahony, Justin Scarr
Australian Water Safety Strategy
2016 - 2020
Goal 9: Reduce boating, watercraft and recreational activity related drowning deaths
i. Increase access to drowning prevention education and skills for recreational boaters and watercraft users
ii. Advocate for best practice in policy, legislation enforcement and promotion of lifejacket use
iii. Conduct research into boating and watercraft-related drowning incidents which assists identification of risk factors and prevention strategies for drowning
Aims
To investigate boating & watercraft-related
drowning deaths in Australia between 1 July
2005 to 30 June 2015.
Develop an increased understanding of the
contributing factors of boating and watercraft-
related drowning deaths.
Provide recommendations to support new and
existing drowning prevention strategies.
Only unintentional drowning deaths whilst participating in
boating and watercraft-related activity were included
Sourced from National Coronial Information System
Definitions as per the Australian Water Safety Strategy 2016-2020
Boat
Powered vessels e.g. motor boats, jet skis, sail boats, yachts,
catamarans, passenger ferries, cruise ships, commercial vessels
Watercraft
Non powered recreational equipment that can be rowed or
paddled e.g. kayaks, canoes, surf skis, surf boards, body boards,
inflatable rafts/objects, any boat without a motor, stand up paddle
board, kite surfing
Methods
Key Findings
39
47
25
33
30
26
34
41
3033
14
8
9
1511
15
20
16
10
17
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 2013-2014 2014-2015
Boating Watercraft Linear (Boating) Linear (Watercraft)
473 over 10 years
71.5% boating, 28.5% watercraft
Who?
4 47 6
36
81
88
82
75
61
29
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
0-4yr 5-9yr 10-14yr 15-17yr 18-24yr 25-34yr 35-44yr 45-54yr 55-64yr 65-74yr 75+
Age
92% Men
Remoteness & Visitor Status
133128
114
49
33
124
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Majorcities
Outerregional
Innerregional
Remote Veryremote
Offshore Unknown
Remoteness classification of incident postcode
Not a visitor
63%
Intrastate visitor21%
Interstate visitor
8%
Overseas visitor
5%
Unknown3%
Activity & Location
Ocean/Harbour53%
River/Creek/Stream
22%
Beach 15%
Lake/Dam/Lagoon 10%
132127
58
38 37
1916
13 127 7 5
2
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Activity prior to drowning
Key risk factors
Alcohol
26.2% involved alcohol
58.8% ≥0.05%
Drugs
30.6% drugs present
31.3% illegal
Over 0.05 59%
Under41%
Alcohol present
BAC ≥0.05%
69% Boaters vs. 25% Watercraft users
Key risk factors cont.
108
352
13
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Yes No Unknown
Multiple fatality event
164
39
54
0
25
50
75
100
125
150
175
No Yes Irrelevant (surfing,body boarding etc.)
Lifejacket status
Emerging issues
Older people
Rural and remote locations
Local residents vs. being a visitor to the drowning location
Increase of drug taking and boating
Increase of deaths when using watercraft-related drowning deaths vs. powered boats
Recommendations
To address drugs and boating
Increased enforcement of random drug testing,
especially in regional areas
Agencies to promote the consequences of mixing drugs
(incld. medication), alcohol and boating
Encourage people to manage their medication and be
aware of side effects
Recommendations
In Rural and Remote areas
Installation of personal rescue equipment at boat ramps
Agencies to develop and promote strategies for
communications e.g. use of VHF radios, personal response
beacons
For Older Adults
Encourage medical checks on a regular basis
Agencies should consider developing specific programs or
refresher courses for this population
Challenges for the future…
Ability to adapt and respond to these new issues
whilst continuing to address key factors such as
lifejackets
Sector collaboration to ensure safety messages
are consistent and relevant
Application of research to policy and practice at
the community level
QUESTIONS?Thank You
Stacey Pidgeon
www.Royallifesaving.com.au