Lifeguards in USA: what you need to know
What do I have to be able to do as a lifeguard, who trains them and why are there too few helpers at the pool edge, especially after the Corona period? As an AI language model, I don’t have access to your location information.
However, you can search for lifeguard courses near me on the internet or by contacting your local community centers, aquatic centers, or universities that offer such courses. You can also check with organizations like the American lifeguard, or the United States Lifeguard Association to find certified lifeguard training programs near you.
We answer the most important questions here. Training, locations and what actually is a junior lifeguard? reporter Jens Roder collected answers to the most important questions about lifeguards on March 22nd, this Wednesday, with the Arnstadt water rescue service of the USA lifeguard – and tried out lifeguard exercises himself.
Where are lifeguards deployed?
Everywhere where people splash, bathe and swim. In indoor and outdoor pools, in fun pools, on quarry ponds with beaches and of course on the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts.
How old do I have to be to be a lifeguard?
Children from the age of ten can take the junior lifeguard exam. The minimum age for the USA lifeguard badge bronze is twelve years, for silver 14 years and for gold 16 years.
What do I need to be able to do as a lifeguard?
Ideally you should be an above average swimmer . But this is not a must! Lifeguard is all about bringing tired, injured or unconscious swimmers safely to shore. You will also learn rescue handles and swimming techniques. Swimming with clothing and diving are also practiced and learned. And the lifeguard must also be able to do cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
Is a lifeguard the same as a lifeguard?
No. In USA there are three different levels of the lifeguard badge: bronze, silver and gold. The requirements increase with each level. In the Gold level, for example, you have to be able to dive 30 meters at a time and also collect objects from the bottom of the pool.
Do I have to repeat the lifeguard exam later?
If I have a lifeguard badge, no matter what level, it is valid forever. However, the lifeguards or lifeguards of outdoor or indoor pools are legally obliged to repeat the examination every two years.
Do lifeguards in outdoor pools have special training?
No. You just need to have passed at least the silver lifeguard badge. In addition, most of them have completed a three-year training course to become specialist pool operators. So you also know how to manage a bath, how pumps and heating work.
Who is responsible for rescuing in an emergency? Just the lifeguard?
In an emergency, everyone is obliged to rescue if they do not put themselves in danger. So self-protection comes first . International sports news.
Who trains lifeguards in USA?
The water rescue service of the USA lifeguard (DRK) and the USA lifeguard Society (DLRG) train. But municipal pools also offer courses, such as the sports and leisure pool in Arnstadt.
Why do we currently have too few lifeguards in USA?
Because of the Corona years, no training, no courses could take place. Lifeguards who have retired during this time have not yet been replaced. Lifeguards are urgently needed, especially in the summertime, when the number of bathers increases significantly . Not only in USA, also on the USA coasts.
Shortly after the start of the bathing season in Saxony, lifeguards warn of a dangerous shortage of lifeguards. Only half of the required positions are filled. In addition, because of the lockdowns in pools and schools, there are many non-swimmers of primary school age.
On the Friday before Whitsun there was the first bathing death in the pool lifeguard. A special warning is given against bathing in unsecured rivers.
Lifeguard USA
At Pentecost , many Saxon outdoor pools were very busy thanks to the good weather. At the same time, the USA Lifeguard Society (DLRG) in Saxony warned of the danger of drowning. “There are currently around 800 to 900 lifeguards on duty. In order to ensure adequate security, twice as many would be needed,” said the managing director of DLRG Sachsen, Sebastian Knabe.
Lifeguard courses from 12 years – number of non-swimmers doubled by Corona
When looking for young people, the DLRG offers courses for lifeguards . Children from the age of twelve can participate. However, there is another problem in addition to the lack of lifeguards: the number of non-swimmers.
In 2021, free vouchers for swimming courses were distributed to 10,000 schoolchildren in Saxony who did not have swimming lessons in the Corona year 2020 . These can still be redeemed until July 31, 2022. Before Corona, there were a maximum of 5,000 non-swimmers in primary schools.
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In an interview with MDR AKTUELL, the President of the Saxon Sports Teachers Association, Peter Pattke, doubts that the current deficit can be made up at all. Corona worked as a burning glass. Even before the pandemic, swimming lessons were not secured. The main reasons are too few swimming pools and too few teachers. Pattke therefore does not consider the voucher scheme to be a solution.
