There have been 54 drowning deaths along the Australian coast this summer.
Statistics have revealed that all of the deaths occured in locations unpatrolled by professional surf lifesavers.
Australia’s coastal safety system is built around visibility—lifeguards, flags and surveillance at popular beaches. But of more than 11,000 beaches nationwide, fewer than five per cent are patrolled, and most only seasonally.
According to Surf Life Saving Australia’s National Coastal Safety Report 2025, 75 per cent of 902 coastal drowning deaths over the past decade occurred more than one kilometre from a surf lifesaving service.
The data points to a clear disconnect between where safety exists and where people swim, helping to explain persistently high drowning rate, despite continued government investment.
Surf Life Saving volunteer Thomas Hayman said he had never witnessed a drowning whilst on patrol at Shellharbour’s North Beach.
“It’s usually fine… if we don’t have enough on patrol, we may have to close the beach or call in other people,” he said.
Mr Hayman said reducing drownings relied on educating beachgoers to read the ocean and identify rip currents, as well as encouraging swimmers to avoid unpatrolled beaches.
However, he said across Australia’s vast coastline, a location-based safety strategy had clear limits.
Behaviour also played a role, with many beachgoers seeking isolated areas for activities such as rock fishing.
Surf Life Saving NSW CEO, Steven Pearce, said over the Easter weekend alone, five people died in rock related coastal incidents.
“It is the worst Easter drowning toll that we have seen in NSW on our records,” he said.
“People should be warned of the dangers of unpatrolled locations.”
Australia’s core beach safety message is to swim between the flags. But this assumes access to patrolled beaches—something most of the coastline does not offer.
