Number of lifeguards to increase at Red Point beach during Basin Head closure
'We're doing our best to plan as much as we can for this influx of people'
The number of lifeguards is set to increase at Red Point Provincial Park, while Basin Head remains closed for wharf repairs and dredging.
Typically the provincial park has two lifeguards, but during the Basin Head closure that number will rise to between six and 10, depending on the day, said Matt Smith, the provincial lifeguard co-ordinator.
"With Basin Head being closed … we're expecting that a lot of members of the public and the locals are going to turn to the nearest beach — being Red Point," Smith said.
'We're doing our best'
"This is kind of something a little new for our lifeguard service," he said. "From our view, we always want to see people swimming at a lifeguarded beach."
As lifeguard service is set to begin on June 27, plans have been made to relocate the lifeguard equipment at Basin Head to Red Point to support the additional lifeguards and extra people who will be on the beach, Smith said.
"We're doing our best to plan as much as we can for this influx of people, but absolutely as the first couple days of the season roll out ... we're going to be watching things very closely and making any changes that need to happen to ensure that we keep all members of the public safe," Smith said.
No plans to expand
Provincial officials are hoping to have the work at Basin Head done in time for the Canada Day weekend, but aren't making any guarantees.
While Red Point is expecting more people there are no plans at the moment to expand the supervised area there, Smith said, but that could change as the season progresses.
"As long as Basin Head is closed we're going to ensure that we have the staff at Red Point to be able to deal with the increased amount of people there."
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With files from Angela Walker