More than 150 people gathered at the Woolamai Beach Surf Life Saving Club for a lively and informative beach safety event centred on understanding the powerful forces of the ocean.
The free, family-friendly event on 7 March, organised by Bass Coast Shire Council, featured one of Australia’s leading coastal scientists, Professor Rob Brander—widely known as Dr Rip—who delivered his engaging presentation Science of the Surf.
Professor Brander shared vital insights about rip currents—the number-one hazard for swimmers on Australian beaches. He explained what rip currents are, the different types of rips, how they form and how swimmers can recognise them.
Importantly, he also spoke about what to do if caught in one.
A highlight of the session was a live rip current demonstration on the beach, where environmentally safe coloured dye was poured into the water to show how rip currents move. The visual demonstration helped the audience clearly see how rips flow away from the shore and why they can quickly pull swimmers into deeper water.
Professor Brander later said the event stood out among the many talks he has delivered over the past two decades.
“I have been doing my community beach and rip current safety education talk, Science of the Surf, for 25 years and must have presented it hundreds of times to thousands of people,” he said.
“But never did it feel so impactful and successful as the talk I gave for Bass Coast Shire Council.”
He also praised the collaboration behind the event.
“Seeing community beach safety efforts like this by local government councils was inspiring, and their strong partnership with Life Saving Victoria is the sort of collaboration that needs to happen everywhere,” he said.
The event drew a diverse crowd, including Member for Bass Jordan Crugnale MP and around 50 visitors who travelled by bus from Melbourne’s south-east. Many of the visitors were from the Officer Gurdwara community across Cardinia, Casey and Greater Dandenong.
Following the presentation, a panel discussion explored beach safety from scientific, cultural and local perspectives. The panel included Dr Harpreet Singh Kandra, who has been leading the Safely Engaging with Water program, along with members of the local surfing community.
Dr Kandra said the event was valuable in bringing together community members and safety organisations. “It was an excellent event that brought together all key stakeholders. Several senior citizens from Officer Gurdwara participated and gained a better understanding of their role as community watch volunteers while enjoying recreation with family and friends.”
Speakers also highlighted the importance of using technology to improve beach safety.
Dr Kandra encouraged people to use tools such as the Beachsafe app to check beach conditions and plan safer visits.
“I also recommended engaging technical experts to explore the integration of navigation applications with Beachsafe, so that users can receive alerts about beach conditions and historical safety data while planning their travel routes,” he said.
Throughout the day, organisers stressed several key messages: understand ocean conditions, plan trips to the beach carefully, share safety knowledge within the community and never underestimate the power of the water.
The event forms part of a broader regional partnership involving Bass Coast Shire, Mornington Peninsula, Casey, Cardinia and Greater Dandenong councils, together with Life Saving Victoria and the leisure industry through the Bass Coast and Mornington Peninsula Cross Council Working Group Water Safety Framework.
The day concluded with lunch and family-friendly beach activities, turning the safety event into a welcoming community gathering.
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