The Matosinhos Bather Rescue Team in Porto has rescued more than 40 swimmers from the sea in the last 15 days, Matosinhos City Council Civil Protection Adviser said on Wednesday.
During the public meeting of the Municipal Executive, which took place in Lesa da Palmeira, Marta Laraña Pontes announced that more than 40 rescue operations had taken place on Matosinhos beach, the most frequented by bathers in the municipality, despite the fact that the swimming season had not yet ended . started in Portugal.
“You should not go out to sea, because, despite the sunny and hot sea, it is winter,” he warned.
Recall that on April 6, a 17-year-old boy drowned on the beach of Matosinhos, and six more people were rescued by this beach rescue team.
When asked by a person present at the meeting why not extend this service to all beaches in the municipality, the civil protection adviser explained that the beach rescue team is not limited to one beach, but 16 kilometers of coastline. .
He added that even though they are focused on the most visited beaches of Matosinhos and Lesa da Palmeira, the rescue team is traveling and watching everyone else.
Marta Laraña Pontes recalled that the Matosinhos Bather Rescue System has been operating all year round, and not just during the swimming season, since 2008.
He clarified that the team consists of eight rescuers, two ATVs, a jet ski for quick response and two “pickup trucks” adapted for rescue in the water.
The adviser emphasized that the service, in collaboration with the Maritime Authority, is committed to providing better safety conditions on the county’s beaches, namely those where surfers are usually present and where there is no regular supervision.
According to him, in the short term, one of the goals is to expand this service to the Lecha River, using the knowledge already gained by the team.
On its official page, the municipality of Matosinhos posted a message on how to spot ageiros, emphasizing that they are “powerful and sometimes difficult to spot”.