LIFE-SAVING SOCIETY

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 June 1940, Page 3

LIFE-SAVING SOCIETY

PAMPHLET CRITICISED

[PEK PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

CHRISTCHURCH, June 12

A pamphlet which is being distributed to consumers of electricity to show how to resuscitate persons who have suffered electric shock was described as “crude and out of date” at a. meeting of the New Zealand Council of the Royal Life-Saving Society this evening. Mr H. H. Henderson, president of the Otago branch of the society, sent in copies of the pamphlet, as printed before and after he had made suggestions to the publishers 1 for improvements, and he asked in his letter “Can anything be done to induce these people to use the Schafer method ?” Mr Henderson said that the pamphlet was being issued in thousands to consumers of electricity. The copies of the pamphlet, which has illustrations, were discussed by the council, and criticised. It was suggested that the society should take steps at a conference of electrical supply authorities which is to be held in July to see that a better pamphlet is published. “It is crude and out of date, the directions are inadequate, and the illustrations are wrong,” said Mr Baxter O’Neill. Mr G. D. Griffiths, the chairman, said that the council should regard the matter very seriously, as the pamphlet stated that the same directions would apply to cases of drowning.

DROWNING ACCIDENTS. A report on fatal drowning accidents was submitted by Mr F. H. Jackson, of Wellington. “If deaths from drowning are compared to deaths from motor-vehicle accidents for the period October-March, during which time most of the drownings occur, it is seen that the rate of drowning deaths is almost the same as ,the rate of deaths from motorvehicle accidents,” the report said. Over the years 1935-1939, from which th© statistics for drownings and road deaths in the Summer months (Oc-tober-March) were available, the follow figures were "” r en (Toad deaths in parenthesis):—l93s-36, 87 (108); 193637, 59 (85); 1937-38, 119 (121); 193839, 65 <lo2’l. There were 77 deaths by water last Summer. The report continued: — “Once again an analysis shows that very few s of those drowned were good swimmerA In 77 downings reviewed there was evidence that only six could

be considered good swimmers, and four of these lost their lives in an Auckland yachting accident. “The average age of all victims during the six months unde preview was 23, compared with an average of 22 in the two previous years. Of the 77 deaths. 42 were under the average. Twenty-five of the 77 victims were drowned in rivers. Only 10 of these were drowned while bathing. The other 15 were drowned after falling into the river, while crossing the river, or bv similar causes. “Eighteen deaths occurred through capsizes of boats or canoes, and 18 occurred on beaches, mostly surf beaches.” The Honours Committee in England advised the council that it had awarded the recognition badge to Miss E. Tilsley, Messrs A. H. Boulton and H. C. Sidford (Auckland), Mr J. L. Dighton (Wellington), and the certificate of thanks to Miss B. M. Campbell (Auckland).