The interior ministry on Monday said that issues with filling vacant lifeguard positions remain, citing particular difficulties for positions limited to three and four month contracts.

“In Nicosia, because the number is small, all positions are filled. In Famagusta, there are some vacant positions, but the largest vacancies are mainly in Paphos, Limassol and Larnaca,” beach safety unit officer Andreas Karvounis said.

He added that the number of permanent lifeguard positions currently amounted to 107, with the remaining positions are for three, four, six, eight or 11 months.

According to Karvounis, three-month positions are mainly filled by students or people who wished to work only during the summer period.

“We are trying to see if we can move within some other frameworks because obviously there is an issue with the three-month positions,” he said.

Referring to lifeguard schedules, he said these varied depending the beach, its traffic and risk, as well as the available personnel

“This year we had a total of 377 approved lifeguard positions,” he said, adding that several positions remained vacant every year but that the ministry was working to increase the number of lifeguard positions annually.

Cyprus has long struggled to fill lifeguard positions due to the seasonal nature of employment during the summer months.

Cyprus Lifeguard Federation president Polis Pallikaros in June said that suggestions to reduce staffing at lifeguard towers to combat the issues would run contrary to international safety standards and could hinder rescue operations.

He called for an increase in permanent or 10-month lifeguard positions across the island, stressing that staffing needs are currently greatest in Limassol and Paphos.