‘Don’t wait until you see it on the news. In the water, a moment’s carelessness can lead to an emergency’. This is the title of the campaign launched by the Andalusian Regional Government, presented on Thursday 18th in La Cala de Mijas by the Andalusian Government delegate in Málaga, Patricia Navarro,  alongside the mayoress of the municipality, Ana Mata (PP), and the councillor for Beaches, Daniel Gómez Teruel (PP).  The initiative, promoted by the regional government since 2019, aims to raise public awareness about the importance of safe behaviour on beaches, in swimming pools and rivers, preventing water-related accidents during the summer.

 

In terms of figures, 2025 saw 107 drowning deaths across the region, 74 of which occurred in natural bodies of water such as beaches, rivers and reservoirs. In the province of Málaga alone, 18 people lost their lives due to drowning that year. This is why the Regional Government remains committed to this campaign. “In Málaga, we have managed to reduce drowning deaths in aquatic environments by 35.7 per cent since 2019”, said Navarro, who called for a sense of responsibility, adding, “we must respect the water”. “We work every year to prevent these drownings, mostly caused by carelessness, letting our guard down, overconfidence and recklessness”, the delegate explained during her speech, in which she placed particular emphasis on the ‘10-20’ rule, aimed especially at those supervising children. “You must look at the child at least every 10 seconds, and remain at a distance that allows you to reach them in less than 20 seconds”.

 

Furthermore, Navarro expressed her gratitude to the 112 emergency services, which are activated by public calls,  an essential telephone service that enables the coordination of multiple response teams simultaneously. She reported that, over the past year, the 112 Emergency Service handled a total of 130 emergencies in the province of Málaga relating to maritime rescue and salvage operations on beaches, inland waters and swimming pools.  “So far this year, more than fifty alerts have already been handled”.

The mayoress of Mijas, where there have been no fatalities in ten years, highlighted the town’s commitment to having the best-equipped lifesaving team in Andalusia. The service has been operational since early June, running from 11:00 and 20:00, to ensure the safety of bathers and visitors to the municipality’s 16 beaches. The team consists of 86 members, 62 of whom form the permanent crew while a further 24 carry out support duties.

Furthermore, Mata highlighted that a public address system has been installed on all the town’s beaches this year to ensure “immediate communication” with bathers and “to inform them of any incidents”.

 

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