Lifeguard: when we pulled him out of the Baltic Sea, there was a strong odor of alcohol

– It happens that vacationers drink from the very morning. Or they don’t sober up after an intoxicating evening or night. We wake up such holidaymakers, still drunk, at the beginning of their duty – says Michał Małecki, WOPR lifeguard in Międzyzdroje.

1. When rescuers pulled a man from the Baltic Sea, he could smell a strong odor of alcohol. People after the rescue operation usually explain that they drank “only two beers”
2. I know from experience that this is not true in almost every case. And lies about the amount of alcohol drunk can have disastrous consequences – says Michał Małecki, lifeguard
3. People faint and faint on the beach because they don’t replenish their fluids. – It’s not true that beer will do the trick. The appropriate level of hydration is provided by water, not alcohol, which has a diuretic effect, explains the rescuer
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272 cans, or 136 liters of beer per year. This is how much the average Pole drinks. And on sunny days, he uses alcohol much more often and more willingly. Behind the beach screens, he drinks beer and vodka, and colorful drinks in numerous beach bars.

– And unfortunately, they do not realize how dangerous a mixture of alcohol and sun is. It happens that they drink from the morning, or simply do not sober up after an intoxicating evening and night. Such holidaymakers, still drunk, we wake up at the beginning of their duty and encourage them to get out of the sun. We explain that they may pass out. It also happens that, although they are respiratory efficient, it is because of deep alcohol intoxication. We call an ambulance to such delinquents – says Michał Małecki, WOPR lifeguard from the beach in Międzyzdroje.

«Only two beers»

Małecki has been saving people for over 10 years and repeats at every turn that alcohol gives some people unprecedented bravado.

– Interests combined with a hot aura cause misfortune. Year after year, I see the same pictures on the beach, i.e. forbidden jumps from the pier, or tipsy tourists who can barely stand on their feet, but still fall into the sea. The last example? A guy was drowning a couple of days ago. When we pulled him out of the Baltic Sea, he could smell a powerful alcohol odor. People, under the influence of drunk wine or vodka, always explain after a rescue operation that it was “only two beers”. However, I know from experience that this is not true in almost every case. Just like a certain party animal. We were on the night duty when we got a message from the headquarters that on an unguarded beach, near fishing boats, an unconscious person needed help. We performed CPR and the patient regained consciousness. However, colleagues agreed that he drank only two drinks, although the percentage in the victim’s body was certainly much, much more – recalls the rescuer.

First: don’t lie

Lies about the amount of alcohol you have drunk can be disastrous.

– Information about how much and what a person has drunk and eaten and what he or she is ill with is very important to us. On the basis of these information, we make decisions about action, we use appropriate rescue tactics – explains Małecki and warns that drinking alcohol, especially in sharply shining sun, not only leads to fainting.

– When we deal with heat above 30 degrees C and we drink alcohol, we often fall asleep after it. This, in turn, leads to skin burns and overheating of the body. It is very dangerous – observes Małecki. It is worth knowing that overheating the body, otherwise known as hyperthermia, is a serious condition that can lead to heat stroke. Children and the elderly are the most vulnerable to hyperthermia, as the temperature in their bodies is not regulated in the same way as in other people.

Parents behind the screen are having a drink and the children are lost

– People after alcohol weaken because they do not replenish fluids. And no, it’s not true that beer will do the trick. Adequate hydration is provided by water, not by alcohol, which has a diuretic effect. In addition, the sun causes sweating, so on a hot day you can lose fluids twice as fast, explains the lifeguard, adding that the symptoms of dehydration are dizziness and headaches, dry mouth and nausea.

Beach screens are a separate problem, which also create a lot of dangerous situations. Not only because they prevent rescue actions.

– Parents, covered by a screen, drink their best while their children get lost easily in the maze of covers. Remember that the perspective of seeing a child is completely different than that of an adult. It is enough to crouch to see what the little man is looking at. It also happens that a kid wanders by the shore, often with a strong wave, and when caught by us, he points his finger at his parents, who are drinking beer somewhere under the dunes. When we suspect that a child is missing and was last seen in the water in the water, 20 rescuers from the entire bathing area are involved in the action. The flag is changed to red, and swimming in the sea is forbidden – he emphasizes.

50 sunbathers

The lifeguard from Międzyzdroje emphasizes that the activities of the 32-person team of Volunteer Water Rescue Service (WOPR) include not only water.

– There are times when we give help to those who appear to be sleeping and are, in fact, unconscious. It is not an easy task on our beach, because we guard the bathing area divided into sectors, which has 900 square meters of space. On a hot day, about 50 people can stay on the guarded beaches of Międzyzdroje at the same time – estimates Małecki and calculates that a day lifeguards save an average of five people from fainting fainting.

– On hot days, we are looking for an average of ten lost children, not once or twice in a row. In mid-August, we received a notification about the need for resuscitation in an unguarded place. When we got there, it turned out that the holidaymakers themselves took the injured person out of the water and started cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

You don’t work well with a drunk

– We took over the action, restored circulation, and the LPR helicopter took the patient to the hospital. I remember that it was a very intense day, because at the same time our rescuers helped another victim, who was eventually taken by the Medical Rescue Team – continues the rescuer, who, as he says, always, everywhere and boringly repeats, after drinking even a minimum of alcohol, do not fry in the sun and do not get into the water.

– Drownings are almost always related to the percentage consumed, because under their influence we lose the ability to assess risk. Deprived of imagination, people carelessly and with bravado go into the water. And then they may not have the coordination and energy to stay afloat. During the intervention, you work differently with a drunk person than with a sober person – warns Michał Małecki at the end.