133 Drowned In 1965

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30956, 12 January 1966, Page 1

133 Drowned In 1965

(from Our Own Reporter) WELLINGTON, Jan. 11. Drownings totalled 133 last yeas—3l more than in 1964. The publicity officer of the Water Safety Council, Mr P. V. Hodge, said today that the most alarming increase in deaths by drowning occurred among small-boat sailors. A total of 52 persons lost their lives in small-boat accidents, compared with 36 the year before. i

“This underlines the need for care in handling of small craft," he said. “People intending to go boating should make sure their craft is equipped with life jackets and keep a very close watch for possible weather changes which could cause trouble for them.” Considerable concern was also felt by the council at a rise from 20 to 28 in the num-I ber of children under the age of five who were drowned, he said. A total of 39 persons were drowned in rivers, streams] and creeks compared with 14 I who lost their lives off

beaches. These figures in 1964 were 30 and 11 respectively. The greatest rise in death by drowning among any single age group was in the 51 to 60 years classification. Seventeen persons in this grouping lost their lives compared with 10 in 1964. Ten persons over 60 were drowned. The figure the previous year was four. In the 16-to-20 group the figures were seven and 13 respectively. In the 11-to-15 classification they rose from eight to nine. Drownings among children aged six to 10 years rose from ; eight to nine.