The warm and sunny summer weather has sent Danes flocking to the country’s beaches this Saturday, after a July that has so far offered few good bathing days. This trend is confirmed by coastal lifeguard chief Anders Myrhøj from TrygFonden Kystlivredning (TrygFonden Coastal Rescue). “We can already see that there is a battle for parking spaces, and people have started to lie close together – at least on many of the large beaches,” he says.
Over the weekend, temperatures are expected to range between 23 and 29 degrees, as stated by the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) on its website. “It also seems that the wind will remain fairly calm, so we do not expect the most difficult bathing conditions. So, this is essentially the recipe for a really good beach weekend,” adds Anders Myrhøj.
Although the sun and heat have been absent on some days, the lifeguards have not been idle. They have spent time training their skills and simulating rescue operations. “Now it’s back to the tower and being vigilant, so the skills that the lifeguards have had time to refine in the wet period can bear fruit,” says Myrhøj. “They are sharp out there and have really been looking forward to having guests on the beach.”
Although the lifeguards expect busy beaches over the weekend, they do not anticipate that the many people will create major problems. “The wind seems to behave, so we do not expect big challenges, but people can get injured, so they need help of a first aid nature,” says Myrhøj. “For example, one can cut themselves on a mussel shell or be unlucky enough to encounter a red or blue jellyfish.”
Anders Myrhøj also expects that some children may get separated from their parents due to the crowds, which could lead to searches. In week 28, covering the period from July 8th to July 14th, the lifeguards carried out a total of 7331 operations of various kinds. None of them involved individuals in life-threatening situations. The majority – 6623 – were of an informative nature. The week before, the lifeguards carried out 4541 operations, two of which involved life-threatening situations.