Tourists visiting Australia's beaches have been asked to be vigilant about their safety coming into the peak holiday season. About 25 percent of the 62 drownings in Australia last summer took place in December and January - the time of extremely high beach visitations across the country. The National Drowning Report released this month also showed that males in the 20-29 years age bracket remained the highest risk group for Surf Life Saving to target. The 50-59 years age bracket is also identified as a high risk group. SLSQ's Lifesaving Services Manager, Mr George Hill, said statistics showed December and January are tragically the time when the majority of surf drownings take place and urged everyone heading to the beach to swim only between the flags during patrolled times. We also call on people to ensure that if they are taking visitors to the beach that they lead by example and stick to the patrolled areas, he said. Queensland Tourism Minister Margaret Keech said tour operators should ensure tourists were taken only to patrolled beaches during, and not before or after, patrol hours. _____________________ Australian Immigration
