Flags down tomorrow on summer patrols as lifesavers warn Bass Coast risk endures

BASS Coast beachgoers are being urged to stay vigilant as the 2025-26 summer patrol season ends tomorrow with volunteer lifesavers and paid lifeguards having performed 631 rescues and 1465 first aid interventions across Victoria over the season.

Life Saving Victoria chief executive Catherine Greaves thanked volunteers for their efforts and urged Victorians along the Bass Coast and South Gippsland coastlines to remain vigilant in, on and around water as patrols wind down.

LSV research identifies Bass Coast as the second highest drowning risk shire in the state after the Mornington Peninsula with 32 fatal drownings recorded in the shire between 2014-15 and 2023-24 about five times the Victorian local government average.

The research found a 96 per cent likelihood of a fatal drowning in Bass Coast each year.

The 2025-26 season was marked by tragedy including the loss of 12-year-old Danny from Taylors Hill who went missing while swimming at Venus Bay's No 4 Beach on January 25 prompting a large-scale multi-agency search that became a recovery mission.

His body was never found.

The season also opened with the drowning of a 65-year-old man at Surfies Point near Surf Beach on Phillip Island earlier this summer despite surfers and an off-duty paramedic performing CPR on the beach.

The incidents followed one of the worst drowning tragedies in the region's recent history when four members of a family were caught in a rip at Cape Woolamai in January 2024.

Across Victoria there were 25 fatal drowning incidents over the season across coastal, inland and home environments lower than the record toll of recent years but still a figure LSV says underlines how much work remains.

Ms Greaves warned that with patrols ending help would be further away.

"It is vital everyone plays their part to prevent drowning and remains aware of the risks around water," she said.

Of particular concern during the cooler months are unintentional entry incidents where people accidentally slip, trip or fall into the water.

These account for more than a third of all drowning fatalities in Victoria and are more likely to occur during autumn, winter and spring when water safety risks are often underestimated.

Rock platforms and riverbanks along the Bass Coast and South Gippsland coastline are among the high-risk areas where slips and falls can quickly become life-threatening in cooler conditions.

New emergency location markers with unique six-character codes linked directly to Triple Zero Victoria's dispatch system have been installed at beaches across Phillip Island, San Remo, Kilcunda, Cape Paterson and Inverloch over recent seasons to help emergency services respond faster.

Ms Greaves encouraged everyone to watch their footing on wet and unstable ground, check conditions, read safety signs and wear a lifejacket when boating or rock fishing.

"If you see someone doing something unsafe calmly and politely call it out," she said.

"We encourage you to do this even if it is someone you do not know."

More than 6000 volunteer lifesavers and paid lifeguards logged in excess of 250,000 patrol hours on Victorian beaches over the summer season.