after the death of two Toulouse residents, the SNSM reiterates the dangers of the Mediterranean

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At the beginning of May, the maritime prefecture launched its water recreation safety campaign 2022. And above all, she called for caution from sea users, pointing to “a steady increase in the number of accidents and interventions at sea”. 25% more between 2020 and 2021. The various deconfinements would have a big effect on these statistics.

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37 deaths in 2021

The Cross-Med (Regional Operational Center for Surveillance and Rescue of the Mediterranean) coordinated more than 4,150 interventions in 2021, 70% of which were for yachting. In 2021, there were 37 deaths (diving, swimming) and 6 disappearances in the Mediterranean.

And the summer season started in a dramatic way with last week, in Narbonne, the death of two young people from Toulouse. Hence the call for caution for this long Ascension weekend. On the ground, the teams know that there will still be a lot of people on the beaches. Guillaume Benoit, head of SNSM Narbonne, was on site during the drowning last weekend. He reminds us that the Mediterranean is anything but peaceful. “Most people think that the Mediterranean is a lake. We say to ourselves: we are not risking anything. But that is completely false. There is a lot of current. We say to ourselves: there is swell, it’s funny . But you can be taken very quickly to the bottom and to the open sea.”

So tip number one is avoid swimming offshore as soon as there is a little wind, continues Emilien Audouy, director of the SNSM training center based in Toulouse. “You have to be careful of the land wind. The tramuntana which blows from the land towards the sea and which pushes you out to sea. And above all, in case of wind, it is better to swim parallel to the beach.”

Dial 196 in case of emergency

And swimming is not yet supervised on most of the beaches around Narbonne and Gruissan despite the very high attendance expected for the bridge. The firefighters held eight positions anticipated last weekend at the request of the municipalities of the Aude coast. They should hold as many at the end of the week

If you are a victim or witness of a person in difficulty at sea: you must dial 196 to contact the rescue services at sea.


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