Mount Maunganui rescues: Two people saved by veteran lifeguard Kent Jarman

Mount Maunganui Lifeguard Service's Kent Jarman. Photo / Andrew Warner

A veteran lifeguard rescued two people who got into trouble off Mount Maunganui this weekend as fine weather saw hundreds flock to beaches.

Mount Maunganui Lifeguard Service’s Kent Jarman, a lifeguard of 56 years, said water conditions were good over the weekend, with a swell of about half-a-metre.

He said that on Saturday he was doing water safety for the Mount Monster event and was on the jetski at the rock jump when he got a call about a girl in difficulty on a boogie board near Tay Street.

Jarman said he shot off and initially struggled to find her but realised he was looking too close to the shore.

The girl, aged 13 or 14, was about 400m out and was “quite happy” to see him.

Jarman said she stayed calm and had put her hand up, as she was meant to, but she was “battling to get back in”.

He suspected she was initially caught in the “really strong rip” at Sutherland Avenue, with the offshore wind holding her out at sea.

“We quite often get rescues for people on floating craft, like the old pink flamingo or something like that, and they can’t paddle very well.”

Mount Maunganui Beach was the scene of two rescues over the weekend. Photo / George Novak

On Sunday, Jarman patrolled the whole day, with lifeguards staying on an extra hour due to how busy the beach was.

Around 5pm, as they were giving the beach a last look, they noticed a boy who was “going nowhere, fast”.

The boy and his friend had hired surfboards but had “no idea what they were doing”.

Jarman said people who hired boards needed to know the basics, including how to lie on the board properly.

He said the boy was roughly 80m out. The nose of the board was raised and he was continuously falling off. Jarman said he realised the boy would not be able to get back in alone.

Jarman said he went out on a paddleboard for the first time in about 10 years, grabbed the front of the boy’s board, got him to climb onto it properly, and guided him back to shore.

He said it was lucky there were no rips.

“He kept thanking me all the way in.”

On Sunday, he estimated upwards of 1000 people were on the beach between Moturiki Island and Tay St, but he was unsure about numbers for Saturday.

He said “a lot” of preventative work was done on Sunday to keep people safe, including advising about 40 people in “at-risk” areas that it might be best to move.

One of these areas was a rip at Sutherland Ave, which he said was strong even with half-a-metre of swell, and expected would be a “doozy” this summer.

He said for lifeguards, it was important to do preventative guarding, especially as the beaches became busier, to reduce the number of rescues and save lives.

“I’ve been on the beach when we’ve lost people and it’s not a good feeling.

“Last year wasn’t a good summer, we had a number of drownings throughout the country … we should be better around water.”

Veteran lifeguard’s tips for staying safe in the surf

• “If in doubt, stay out.”
• Ask a lifeguard if you are unsure about the conditions – they will be on beaches every day over the holidays.
• If caught in a rip, stay calm, let it take you out and put your hand up to signal for help.
• If there is a swell, look for the places where the surf is breaking evenly because that indicates there is likely no rip there.
• The calmest spot is not always the best place to swim.

Source: Kent Jarman

Cira Olivier is a social issues and breaking news reporter for NZME Bay of Plenty. She has been a journalist since 2019.