Starting Aug. 1, the "no lifeguard on duty" signs at St. Thomas’ public beaches could be replaced with real lifeguards, said Housing, Parks and Recreation Department officials.
According to Commissioner St. Claire Williams, Housing, Parks has teamed up with the American Red Cross to provide the certification needed for the lifeguards to hit the beach. There are currently no lifeguards on St. Thomas, and six on St. Croix, Williams said.
"There is no one else other than people in this new class expressing interest in becoming lifeguards," Williams said. "We have been advertising for interested persons, we have worked with the Division of Personnel, who would refer any qualified people to us, we have done all kinds of recruitment initiatives so we can identify people, but this is the first time we’ve been successful in getting anyone."
The department has also stepped up to pay for the training, just so it can get lifeguards on board, Williams said. He added that local lifeguards have to be re-certified every three years, but lately there have been two major hurdles the department has had to clear: a lack of agencies qualified enough to do the certification, and a lack of individuals with enough swimming skill to pass the test.
The American Red Cross is generally the agency responsible for conducting lifeguard certifications, but representatives said Tuesday that no course was ever offered through the local chapter.
"This class we had last April would have been the first lifeguarding course that our local chapter has had directly through the chapter," said American Red Cross Program and Services Director Laurel Fleming.
Fleming said that any lifeguarding course that was offered locally with an American Red Cross-trained instructor would have been through a private institution under what is called an "authorized provider agreement."
"That agreement is no longer valid with the American Red Cross, because there were issues with the level of quality, and the rules and the regulations that were provided under that agreement that were not being met, so the regional director did away with it," Fleming said. "So this April would have been the first class that the local St. Thomas chapter has had, as far as I know, for several years. And we had six successful lifeguards trained for Housing, Parks and Recreation, and I know that the commissioner and assistant commissioner are on board to post them at the public beaches."
Fleming said last Friday the agency issued two pre-course skill tests for individuals interested in joining up for a second class, but out of the eight people that signed up, six came out and only two passed. The American Red Cross must have at least six individuals to have a class.
"It’s not easy, passing the test," Fleming said. "People think, oh, I run, play football, I can do this. But with swimming, you can’t breathe on demand — it’s a discipline, there has to be rhythm to your breathing and your stroke. You can’t do what you want to do, otherwise you’re a flounder-and-flopping mess, and you can’t breathe. It really is a refined skill, and it takes quite a bit of practice."
Fleming said even the six who passed the first class failed their pre-course test and had to get extra training with an instructor in order to make it through the second time around. Now, they are all fully certified and have advanced training in CPR and first aid, she said.
Fleming said the agency is always looking for more individuals interested in becoming lifeguards, and Williams said the department can hire them if they have the vacancies. The lifeguards that might be coming on next month should be posted at the three St. Thomas public beaches: Coki Point, John Brewer’s Bay and Lindbergh Bay, Fleming said.
