1 Read the article. For questions 1-5, choose the correct answer (A, B, C, or D).
Beach heroes
There is no more welcome sight on beaches all over the world than a lifeguard.
You can spot the lifeguards a mile off – which is, of course, half the point. Not only do they wear highly conspicuous red-and-yellow uniforms, but somehow they manage to look better than the rest of us too.
‘Last year, we only had to make five rescues,’ says head lifeguard Rod Terry, 22. ‘Another year, we helped 29 people in the space of three hours. You never know what you’re going to be called upon to do, which is why you need lifeguards who can cope with any situation.’ You’d think, of course, they’d all be keen to perform some public heroics, but Rod is quick to rebuff any such suggestions.
‘As far as we’re concerned, we’d far rather stop someone getting into trouble than have to get them out of it.’ One of the lifeguards in Rod’s team is 24-year-old Rebecca Surridge. She says, ‘One minute you can find yourself dealing with minor cuts and grazes, and the next with a situation where one group of people on the beach is annoying another group. You have to handle things sensitively too.’ Even if they do talk tough, the lifeguards have no legal authority with which to back up their words. ‘We can only advise,’ adds Rod. ‘If someone wants to ignore a red flag, they’re free to do so. ’A red flag is what the lifeguards put out when the sea’s too rough for swimming. Exactly when that moment is reached is something that Rod alone decides. A lifeguard since the age of 14, first as a volunteer, he’s now a paid member of the town council’s leisure services department. ‘You take into account a variety of things: you listen to the weather reports and forecasts and you assess the strength of the wind.’ Other factors to be considered, depending on location, of course, are he dangers that may be lurking in the water.
The vast majority of swimmers take notice of a red flag, but there are always those who don’t, and long before they start really getting into trouble, lifeguards will be on their way out to them, dragging with them a ‘torpedo’ buoy, which is a long sausage-shaped inflatable on the end of a rope. This can help them bring in swimmers suffering from cramp, brought on by swimming too soon after a meal, or fatigue caused by swimming out too far. ‘Then you get the silly ones who jump off the harbour wall,’ sighs Rod. ‘Mostly, though, swimmers stick within our exclusion zone.’
This is a 100 m x 100 m patch of sea. The prime rule of the exclusion zone is that boats are forbidden to enter it – and humans forbidden to leave it. Even a rubber ring is pursued and retrieved. If found floating out at sea, it could set off a coastal-wide emergency search.
At any one time, there are eight lifeguards on duty, either scanning the waves or patrolling the beach (lifebelts need checking, telephones need to be kept working in case of emergency calls). The team works five days a week, and constantly has to rotate tasks as this facilitates maximum degrees of attention. The other thing that keeps the lifeguards alert is the fact that they all get on well together. ‘It’s not as if we’re all sitting there in silence,’ says Lisa. ‘We’re always talking to each other, either in person or down the two-way radio.’
In fact, each summer season is something of an old friend’s reunion; this is the seventh year Pete has worked here, while it’s the fifth for Rebecca. Come wintertime, they go off round the world – Pete’s been surfing in Mexico and Rebecca’s just back from Bali, Hawaii and New Zealand. It’s a case of not yet wanting to give up their seasonal, sunlit round of beaches. ‘There’s plenty of time for a proper job later,’ says Rebecca.
1 According to Rod Terry, lifeguards need to be ...
A athletic.
B flexible.
C attentive.
D hardworking.
2 Rebecca Surridge says that lifeguards ...
A operate in limited areas.
B have limited powers over people.
C are trained to deal with limited injuries.
D watch over a limited number of people.
3 According to the text, which factor affects a lifeguard’s decision to put up a red flag?
A the presence of something dangerous in the sea
B the quality of the water in the sea
C the environmental conditions
D the number of swimmers
4 In order to maintain their concentration levels, lifeguards ...
A sometimes ask their colleagues for feedback.
B regularly change the duties they perform.
C usually take several days off each week.
D often take long breaks during the day.
5 It’s common for a group of lifeguards ...
A to have another job at the same time.
B to meet up when they’re not working.
C to work together in the same location.
D to go travelling together when the summer is over.
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