Shortage of lifeguards in Kato Pyrgos to be addressed

The interior ministry will launch a lifeguard workshop as a means of covering staffing needs, it announced on Thursday.

This comes after efforts failed to find and hire lifeguards to man organised beaches in Kato Pyrgos.

Fourteen people have so far shown interest in the course.

Acknowledging the shortage of lifeguards, the ministry said that “keeping in mind the safety of those bathing, the lifeguards chosen should hold the required qualifications as described in the Salamis national plan.”

It added that the shortages exist only because of a lack of qualified individuals.

Despite this, the ministry has drawn up a plan for the additional staffing of specific beaches, including beaches in Limassol district, to be implemented immediately.

Interior minister Nicos Nouris seeking to address shortcomings said earlier this year that “we have prepared and promoted a service plan for the lifeguard position, which provides for an upgrade of the pay scale.”

Furthermore, referring to the Salamis national plan first introduced in 2018, he said that a recent evaluation of the plan resulted in the identification of a range of issues faced by Cypriot lifeguards including a formal definition of a lifeguard’s duties, low pay scale, lack of the necessary equipment as well as antiquated lifeguard towers.