Mount to patrol for Easter

UPDATED: Mount Maunganui Lifeguard Service will be patrolling the beach on Saturday and Sunday and will make a call on the day as to where a flagged area will be established.

The Mount club initially stated an Easter patrol was unlikely, joining Papamoa and Omanu surf life saving clubs in keeping their flags and IRBs firmly packed away.


Papamoa Surf Life Saving Club will not be patrolling this Easter weekend. Photo: File.

Easter weekend marks the official end of Surf Life Saving NZ's patrol season, which started with volunteer patrols at Labour Day weekend last October.

But the Western Bay clubs officially finished their seasons on April 6.

Mount Maunganui Lifeguard Service general manager Glenn Bradley says lifeguards will now be patrolling at the Mount Saturday and Sunday, but not on Monday.

Papamoa Surf Life Saving Club administrator Anita Trappitt says it's difficult to justify a patrol when so many people go away and the weather is poor.

'It's hard because people go away and we don't want to set up a patrol for a one-off when we have already had a couple of weeks off and if the weather is going terrible we will be sitting around doing nothing.”

Omanu Surf Life Saving Club director Mike Swan confirms the club will not be making an appearance with attempts to rally volunteer lifeguards two weeks after the season's end unrealistic.

'We spent last weekend cleaning the club leaving everything spotless; washed, rinsed and put away and it would be sacrilege to take it all back out,” says Mike.

Surf Life Saving New Zealand eastern regional manager Chris Emmett says the end of season can throw up some regional issues with Easter falling at various times.

But final decisions to patrol the beaches for the extra weekend are made squarely on recommendations from the areas' surf lifesaving committees, says Chris.

'The thing is traditionally our season is Labour Weekend to Easter. But Easter can fall sometimes on the first weekend of April or sometimes the last weekend of April,” says Chris.

'Instead of actually saying ‘Hey let's make it Easter' we will make it the first weekend of April. That's our traditional patrol season.”

He says there is a possibility of Waihi and Hot Water Beach being patrolled.

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