Harbour and river bar crossings are some of the most dangerous for Kiwi boaties with Coastguard volunteers attending multiple incidents, including fatalities, every year.

Now the organisation, alongside New Zealand Sport Fishing Council and local fishing/boating clubs, is setting out to lower the rate, this month beginning a nationwide Bar Awareness Seminar Roadshow alongside a brand-new series of translated educational videos in seven languages.

The free Bar Awareness Seminars are designed to equip boaties with the skills, knowledge and confidence to make good decisions about whether to cross a bar.

The seminars cover critical topics, including understanding bar-specific hazards, assessing the impact of weather and tides, and implementing emergency procedures if trouble occurs.

To further support boaties from diverse communities, Coastguard has released Bar Awareness education videos with translated subtitles into seven languages: te reo Māori, Chinese, Samoan, Tongan, Cook Island Māori, Fijian, and Thai.

“Understanding the risks associated with crossing river and harbour bars is critical for anyone going out on the water. Things can happen even to the most experienced boatie, whether it’s their first or 100th time crossing,” community engagement manager Nātia Tucker said.

“We know that bars change all the time, so our Bar Awareness Seminars and accompanying videos offer practical up to date advice from local volunteers and experts who cross these bars regularly.”

“As a council of clubs, we are invested in making sure our club members make it home safely after a day on the water. That’s why we have teamed up with the Coastguard to roll out this program. After all, even the fish of a lifetime is not worth losing your life over,” New Zealand Sport Fishing Council communications and operations lead Mike Plant.

Over the past decade, Aotearoa has witnessed 826 preventable drowning deaths, 31 of which occurred while crossing a river or harbour bar. Of those 31, a high percentage were from one of New Zealand’s many ethnic communities, including Chinese, Cook Island Māori, Thai and Tongan. Earlier this month, three lives were tragically lost in a bar crossing incident in Riverton, Southland, with Coastguard volunteers rescuing two people from the water.

“We want our videos to be accessible for a wide range of New Zealanders, especially for some of whom English is a second language. Of course, we still encourage them to attend a seminar in their region to get the most up-to-date information on their local bar,” Coastguard Bar Safety programme lead Simon Marshall explained.

The Bar Awareness Seminars are being held nationwide throughout the rest of the year.

More details on the seminars can be found here: Bar Awareness Roadshow | Humanitix