YOUNG firefighters have been getting 'water smart' thanks to a pilot initiative by a drowning prevention charity.

Sixteen members of the Young Firefighters Association (YFA) from Droitwich undertook the Royal Life Saving Society UK programme designed to give children and young people greater awareness of their own and other people’s safety and risks in and around open water, whilst on summer camp on the River Wye.

Chief fire officer Nathan Travis, who attended the training. said: “Our Young Firefighters are aged 13 to 17 and so are perfectly placed to pilot the new Water Smart award.

“The YFA encourages personal responsibility and civic safety and this training programme gets these young people to consider not only their risks while having fun in water, but also to identify possible risks to others around them.

“We want children and young people to continue to enjoy the rest of the summer safely – and swimming can be a fantastic part of this. These Young Firefighters can now confidently help their friends recognise how to swim for fun, safely, by avoiding the cold water of deep quarries and lakes which can lead to drowning tragedies.

“Working with RLSS UK and its Water Smart Award perfectly supports our vision of Saving More Lives, via intervention and prevention activities within our communities.”

So far in 2018, nobody has drowned accidentally in a quarry lake, canal or river in Herefordshire and Worcestershire, and this initiative with RLSS UK aims to maintain this.

Between 2013 and 2017, 24 people drowned in open water accidents in the two counties. Of those, seven people died during the months of May to September, and one of these people was under 18 years old.