Chinese New Year celebrated in Northbridge

The 2019 Perth Chinese New Year Fair was enjoyed by thousands of people in Northbridge yesterday. Royal Life Saving WA was pleased to be involved in this multicultural extravaganza, which included stalls, a parade, cultural activities, lion and dragon dancing, music, games and rides.

Royal Life Saving WA has a strong relationship with the Chung Wah Association, as we work together to promote water safety amongst WA's Chinese community. For those who are born and raised in Australia it’s easy to take our vast waterways, pools and love for water activities for granted, but for many of the more than 680,000 migrants living in Western Australia swimming and water safety education is something that isn’t prevalent in their country of birth, and sadly this is reflected in drowning statistics.

Across Australia over the past ten years there were 762 drowning deaths involving people who were born overseas - 137 of these were in WA. Of the drowning deaths that occurred in our state during that time 40% involved people who were born overseas, the largest proportion of any state or territory. For this reason Royal Life Saving Society WA’s Multicultural Steering Committee - which the Chung Wah Association is involved with - is determined to ensure all West Australians, no matter where they come from, learn vital swimming and water safety skills.

Royal Life Saving WA volunteers shared water safety advice and information at a stall during the weekend's Chinese New Year Fair, encouraging those attending to take part in our men's only and women's only swimming lessons where they can learn vital swimming and water safety skills to enjoy WA's many water activities. We look forward to continuing to work with Chung Wah and other cultural organisations throughout the coming year to ensure all Western Australians have an opportunity to Swim and Survive!

Find out more about our work with WA's multicultural communities at the link below.