LIFE-SAVING

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 92, 15 October 1940, Page 11

LIFE-SAVING

MANY AWARDS GAINED

The total number of awards made by the New Zealand Council of the Koyal Life-saving Society for the year ended May 31, 1940, was 4840, the third highest number ever granted in any one year, according to the annual report of the society. In the maintenance, under difficulties, of its awards total at this high figure, the council sees proof that the teachings of the society are becoming more widely recognised as of inestimable value to the community at large by minimising the appalling loss of life by drowning. During the past twelve years over fifty thousand of these awards for life-saving ability have been granted, but in each case only after the candidate concerned had put in months of preliminary training and had, under rigid conditions of examination, satisfied one of the society's examiners of his ability both to save life from drowning and to restore the apparently drowned to life. This year 86 per cent, of the awards have gone to pupils of the Dominion's schools and colleges and to trainees of the four Teachers' Training Colleges, but the society would like to see swimming clubs and other organisations concerned with the physical welfare of the people become more active in this connection. Accidents to children occur most frequently only when bathers of their own age are present and to those no longer children when they are bathing in rivers or at beaches not patrolled by professional life-sav-ers, so. it will be readily seen that the more people there are taught release, rescue, and resuscitation the lower will be the number of fatal drowning accidents. The Wigram Shield, presented by the late Sir Henry Wigram for competition among the New Zealand branches for the greatest percentage increase or lowest percentage decrease in award points in one year over the average of the previous two years, has been won by the Manawatu branch, which last won the trophy in 1935-36. The Bamford Shield, for the club, college, or school gaining the greatest number of awards, irrespective of roll number or membership, has been won by the College Street School, Palmerston North.