Fire service team up with Lakeside Shopping Centre to boost water safety and save lives

Essex County Fire and Rescue (ECFRS) has partnered with Lakeside Shopping Centre to deliver a life-saving water safety initiative designed to equip local businesses with life-saving skills and equipment.

As part of the highly successful Waterside Responder Scheme, a team of Lakeside managers received hands-on session last week from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service and Kent Fire and Rescue Service. The scheme, created by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), aims to help businesses located near water, particularly those serving alcohol, by preparing them to respond quickly and effectively to water emergencies.

ECFRS, in partnership with the RNLI offers these vital sessions to show participants how to assist someone in distress in the water before the arrival of emergency services. This initiative is part of a broader effort to improve safety across Essex, led by the Essex Water Safety Forum.

During the session, Lakeside staff were shown how to safely use a throw bag to pull people to safety. Throw bags are a rescue device which contains a rope which can be thrown to a person in water. Staff were also advised what vital information is needed when calling 999 in an emergency. The throw bags and the sessions are being provided completely free of charge.

Daisy Pearson from ECFRS’s Water Safety Team said: 

“Every year around 400 people drown in the UK. Many of these deaths could have been prevented if there had been quick response from someone who had the right skills and equipment to help."

Howard Oldstein, Centre Director at Lakeside Shopping Centre commented:

“As a key part of the local community, it’s important to Lakeside that our staff are equipped with essential life-saving skills. We are pleased to partner with Essex County Fire and Rescue Service (ECFRS) to strengthen our water safety credentials.

“The work ECFRS is doing for the community and businesses near water is so important and we hope that our collaboration spreads awareness of the importance of water safety, ultimately saving lives.”