Riverbank lifeguards participated in the Lifeguard Round-Up last week at Johansen High School in Modesto. The annual event unites the lifeguards in the area to prepare them for the summer season with intensive training that covers rapid response, extractions, CPR, and first aid.
With the hot temperatures and summer in full effect, people hitting the water is inevitable whether it is a swimming pool, a lake, or the river. The City of Riverbank’s Parks and Recreation Department Director Sue Fitzpatrick takes water safety very seriously. With the Community Pool opened for recreational swim and other aquatic programs, the training could not come at a better time.
“Riverbank participates because this is a very good way for lifeguards at the beginning of the season to really get their skills up to where they need to be,” said Fitzpatrick. “The trainer, Pete Dequincy is very, very good and really works them hard. It is good for them to be part of something larger where they work with other cities instead of just our own guards.”
The sun was out, the water was sparkling and there was quite the buzz at the pool with over 100 lifeguards on the scene. There were 13 lifeguards from Riverbank that attended the event on Thursday as well as lifeguards from Patterson, Turlock, Modesto, Manteca and Empire.
“They enjoyed the event and were pretty tired upon returning, even the next day,” remarked Fitzpatrick. “Our more seasoned guards would love to lead a station next year as they felt they could make it even better.”
Riverbank has participated in the Round-Up for the past six years. However due to COVID they did not have the training the last two years.
There are several stations that the lifeguards rotate through including dryland drills like performing CPR as well as a session with the Modesto Fire Department. Not all lifeguards had the session with the fire department as they had to leave a few times for a fire call.
The guards go through various scenarios including getting to the victims quickly and extraction drills in the water for backboarding. The drills were timed and repeated continuously.
“I think the standout moment for Directors and Supervisors was just the impact of seeing all the guards together and working so hard,” expressed Fitzpatrick. “It is a challenge to obtain guards and get them through all the trainings pre-season. All have had to go through hours of training for lifeguarding and advanced first aid prior to this training. I think we are all very proud of them and are happy we have our staff in place for the busy summer.”
CPRS (California Park & Recreation Society) District 5 is part of Region 2 that includes Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Tuolumne, Calaveras, Mariposa, and Merced counties. CPRS organized the lifeguard training event and the City of Riverbank is a member of the society.