BY JESSICA ROUSE

Summer just got a little safer for beachgoers at Blacksmiths with a funding boost for shark protection.

Lake Macquarie Council were successful in their bid to the state government for funding for drone equipment and training for staff on a 14 week trial.

$33, 290 will be put towards the trial as a part of the NSW Government’s Shark Observation Grants Program.

Brad Sutton, the Lifestyle Services Manager at coucil said they’ll be able to use the footage if they need to, but generally the same protocols if they spot a shark will apply.

Image surf-forecast.com

“We will be able to share that through media releases as well as maybe on our website any aerial photographs that we have of the sharks. But I guess the important thing is and the take home message is that we will act on that information immediately and close the beach as appropriate.”

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot Macdonald said, “Improved survelliance on beaches provide a clearer line of vision for surf lifesavers to spot sharks and are also useful for spotting people in distress.”

Brad Sutton said the trial will give them a better idea of how operating a drone fits in with lifesavers day-to-day work.

“The drone technology has been proven to be effective is sighting sharks from the air, part of what we will be looking at is how compatible is driving a drone for a lifeguard given their other safety obligations.”

In the end though, anything that will keep surfers, swimmers, rock fishers and beachgoers safe at the beach can only be a good thing.
“For every person that is fatally attacked by a shark, 100 people drown on our beaches so our focus is still highly on water safety and promoting those safety messages. This year has been a significantly busy start to the year, in the first two weeks we’ve had 172 rescues,” said Brad Sutton.