Thankfully, there are trained lifeguards keeping watch over your summer water fun. Their first priority is safety. But there's a lot that goes on behind the scenes that they'd never tell you. Think you know all there is to know about sunscreen, chlorine and pool "accidents". Get a glimpse of what a work day of a lifeguard’s water park is like, by reading June’s journal.
As a life Guard for the aqua park, we have to awaken early to be ready before any guests begin to arrive. At 6:00 am I wake up, chug a litre and a half of water in order to combat the up and coming dehydration that can set in, all before I begin preparing for my hot day at work ahead in the beaming sunshine.
After a light breakfast and more water consumption, I Leave the house at 7: 00 am and make my way to the beach travelling on my bicycle so it takes a little time but the exercise is good as it loosens up my body and works the muscles for the physical day ahead.
Upon arriving around 8:00 at the Aqua Play Parks, my day usually begins with gathering of the blower pumps and hoses to touch up the air pressure on the Inflatable water park due to the slight air loss caused by the cool night air. Just before inflating, I will head down first to the Water Park storage shed and meet with the technical staff, checking on the lifeguard’s gadgets and equipment. Myself and a helper life guard will jump into a small inflatable boat with the equipment and proceed out to the custom inflatable aqua park. Inflating the water park units under the bright morning sun is enjoyable as the air is fresh and the lake water is calm. The birds are chirping in the silence of the morning atmosphere.
After all the floating water park units are touched up with an extra shot or air pressure, it is now around 9:15-9:30 am. I proceed to the water park entrance area to meet up with the other park staff. We make sure that all whistles, watches and safety ropes have been checked thoroughly as the water park will open at 10am. We also send a few life guards out onto the inflatable water park to ensure that all unit connections are firm and attached and are ready to go when the park opens. A last-minute check on errors and mistakes from yesterday are not done again and make sure they are all ready to go.
It’s very close to opening
as the clock ticks to 10:00 am Another quick discussion with the lifeguards and brief them on the day's operations expectations. Also, to note and discuss and private parties and the numbers we can expect for that party. They then are divided into safety and observation teams accordingly to the size of each group. Normally, I would conduct last minute observation tips with a group of them. Subsequently, meet with the operations manager to plan the areas and stations that each lifeguard is in charge off since when crowded, the vision may be obscured.
Therefore, based on this Party type environment that we expect, and before the water park opens, I will contact the immediate supervisor to brief him about the current park situation and get his instructions before proceeding to any major decision-making for the day’s operation. I will then wait for the cue from the guest service department if everything is in place before opening the gates to our visitors. I then give them the green light to go if everything is ready.
The guests start to pour in (no pun intended). They begin to line up at the Inflatable water park entrance with tickets in hand. The security guard at the gate will then begin to accept tickets and point the patrons down into the life jacket staging area. Here they will start choosing a life jack that fits them well. Our staff will assure that it is a good fit and that the buckles are all clipped together properly.
Once fitted with the jackets, they are escorted to the beaches edge. There, this next group, which is ready for entrance to the floating aqua park is arranged in order to listen to me give a short safety briefing. We instruct in the basics such as stay in teams, watch out for slipping and falling while not panicking and to remove their jewelry etc. and to just respect the water but enjoy the adventure.
We will take question also and are always ready to give as much help or instruction as possible. It is my responsibly aside from safety to also assure that everyone has a great time. We do allow them to take go pro camera’s but make notice we are not responsible for lost or stolen equipment.
Now, they are released to freely inter the water and begin their lovely, wet and wild fun adventure.
As a life Guard for the aqua park, we have to awaken early to be ready before any guests begin to arrive. At 6:00 am I wake up, chug a litre and a half of water in order to combat the up and coming dehydration that can set in, all before I begin preparing for my hot day at work ahead in the beaming sunshine.
After a light breakfast and more water consumption, I Leave the house at 7: 00 am and make my way to the beach travelling on my bicycle so it takes a little time but the exercise is good as it loosens up my body and works the muscles for the physical day ahead.
Upon arriving around 8:00 at the Aqua Play Parks, my day usually begins with gathering of the blower pumps and hoses to touch up the air pressure on the Inflatable water park due to the slight air loss caused by the cool night air. Just before inflating, I will head down first to the Water Park storage shed and meet with the technical staff, checking on the lifeguard’s gadgets and equipment. Myself and a helper life guard will jump into a small inflatable boat with the equipment and proceed out to the custom inflatable aqua park. Inflating the water park units under the bright morning sun is enjoyable as the air is fresh and the lake water is calm. The birds are chirping in the silence of the morning atmosphere.
After all the floating water park units are touched up with an extra shot or air pressure, it is now around 9:15-9:30 am. I proceed to the water park entrance area to meet up with the other park staff. We make sure that all whistles, watches and safety ropes have been checked thoroughly as the water park will open at 10am. We also send a few life guards out onto the inflatable water park to ensure that all unit connections are firm and attached and are ready to go when the park opens. A last-minute check on errors and mistakes from yesterday are not done again and make sure they are all ready to go.
It’s very close to opening
as the clock ticks to 10:00 am Another quick discussion with the lifeguards and brief them on the day's operations expectations. Also, to note and discuss and private parties and the numbers we can expect for that party. They then are divided into safety and observation teams accordingly to the size of each group. Normally, I would conduct last minute observation tips with a group of them. Subsequently, meet with the operations manager to plan the areas and stations that each lifeguard is in charge off since when crowded, the vision may be obscured.
Therefore, based on this Party type environment that we expect, and before the water park opens, I will contact the immediate supervisor to brief him about the current park situation and get his instructions before proceeding to any major decision-making for the day’s operation. I will then wait for the cue from the guest service department if everything is in place before opening the gates to our visitors. I then give them the green light to go if everything is ready.
The guests start to pour in (no pun intended). They begin to line up at the Inflatable water park entrance with tickets in hand. The security guard at the gate will then begin to accept tickets and point the patrons down into the life jacket staging area. Here they will start choosing a life jack that fits them well. Our staff will assure that it is a good fit and that the buckles are all clipped together properly.
Once fitted with the jackets, they are escorted to the beaches edge. There, this next group, which is ready for entrance to the floating aqua park is arranged in order to listen to me give a short safety briefing. We instruct in the basics such as stay in teams, watch out for slipping and falling while not panicking and to remove their jewelry etc. and to just respect the water but enjoy the adventure.
We will take question also and are always ready to give as much help or instruction as possible. It is my responsibly aside from safety to also assure that everyone has a great time. We do allow them to take go pro camera’s but make notice we are not responsible for lost or stolen equipment.
Now, they are released to freely inter the water and begin their lovely, wet and wild fun adventure.
On and off the aqua park, I am continually assisting guests in locating their whereabouts, how to climb or maneuver around the aqua park and answer any and all questions about the park, availability of the facilities, etc. As the head lifeguard, I also supervise the safety and rescue of swimmers, and water sports participants. At times we have had a guest slip and maybe loose their wind. Or another has jumped in doing a belly flop. No matter how severe or minor, we life guards take everything seriously and will dive in like torpedoes to reach the guest almost immediately. We will assess the problem and decide by using hand signals to the other life guards or whistle alerts, who then do the same to the manager on the shoreline. We are all in action to follow the safety procedures and guideline to make sure the patron gets the best and fastest attention.
Individuals have a thought that lifeguards don't generally do much just sitting around and watching the birds but actually, in all seriousness, we must be prepared to face anything from a cut finger to a potential heart attack or spinal injury, so we must be always ready to act. We will dependably be the first port of call. At Aqua Play Parks, we are highly trained and prepared for a wide range of scenarios.
As a lifeguard, I will say that athlete's foot is a common skin infection that we get from being a in and on the water full time, every day. We must apply creams to the bottom of our feet every night before bed. We do wear a water type-based shoe; however, our feet still take on water much the same as if you sat in your bath tub for hours. Our skin becomes tanned. We wear our hats and apply UV cream by the hour. However, no matter how it goes, we stay focused on our path. Most of the times, we do not consume our break time as our priority are the guests. We wanted them to maximize the time and really enjoy well. We will arrange our breaks accordingly to the traffic flow and then will work on rotations with the other life guards so we always have life guards ready and able.
As the day progresses, I will walk around the water park beach and shorelines and monitor the duties carried out by other lifeguards. I use the walkie-talkie to check on the other areas as well as visit the first aid room to ensure all supplies are ready for any emergencies. I will also make sure the life guards on the Inflatable water park are moving around flowing with the crowds. I have the best perspective on this situation as I stand on the beach. Sometimes I will use my binoculars to examine closer the situation on crowd movements across the park.
Many times, we will skip lunch because we receive a lot of guests who like to play. That’s why we water up and eat well in our downtime. It’s much like an athlete in a long game. All dedication requires sacrifice, it may be little or a lot, but sacrifice is an indispensable ingredient that serves as our investment in everyday work.
Later in the day, I will head down again to the water park and monitor operations. Meet up with the lifeguard team mid-day, to ensure that there are no hiccups on our equipment or in the guest environment. Air pressure and connection quality on the inflatables are also visually checked again.
Around 3:00pm, I will meet up with the lifeguard team, housekeeping supervisor and first aider to discuss on the day's operation so far and plan for works and training to be carried out for the second half of the day.
At 4:00pm I will continue assisting the guests as they move on to change and leave the park. We will Do another aqua park walk around to check air pressures as the cool change in weather can cause the inflatables to soften or to look for the errors of the day and inform the technical team if there are any urgent work to be attended to. If more air pressure is needed, then I dispatch a 2 man team to enter the inflatable boat with pumps and generator to top up as necessary.
Around 6:00 pm, the day is cooling and the light in the sky is dimming as we enter sunset. I check on all lifeguards and thier get their station reports before giving the call to shut down. Before we shut down, we let the last guests finish off their time allotment. We actually watch these last few very close as the sky is changing, and we want to literally follow them in their last few minutes of play.
As these last guests exit the inflatable water park adventure, we know get the remaining life guards to do a complete on-water walk around the inflatable structure. We make sure no guests are still playing on the water park or in the water surrounding the water park. We also do a quick inspection on the inflatables and the inflatables connection points. Then each life guard will send hand signals for the ok and clear sign. If any problems or issue, they will blow their whistle in 3 tweets to get my attention to which I will respond and act accordingly.
At 6:45 pm I will now meet with immediate operations manager and brief him on the day's operation and at the same time, receive his instruction on works and approval. We officially release all life guards for the day.
7:00 pm I leave for Leave for home and ponder on the excitement and joy that the guess had received. I have dinner, prayers and watch television and at the same time thinking what's up for work tomorrow.
Apply some cream to my feet and go to sleep. That’s my day in an aqua park life guard!
At Aqua Play Parks, we worked very long shifts in the heat of a summer. The breaks were few and far between. The days went by long yet it was a fun time seeing everyone safe and happy in your pool.
Individuals have a thought that lifeguards don't generally do much just sitting around and watching the birds but actually, in all seriousness, we must be prepared to face anything from a cut finger to a potential heart attack or spinal injury, so we must be always ready to act. We will dependably be the first port of call. At Aqua Play Parks, we are highly trained and prepared for a wide range of scenarios.
As a lifeguard, I will say that athlete's foot is a common skin infection that we get from being a in and on the water full time, every day. We must apply creams to the bottom of our feet every night before bed. We do wear a water type-based shoe; however, our feet still take on water much the same as if you sat in your bath tub for hours. Our skin becomes tanned. We wear our hats and apply UV cream by the hour. However, no matter how it goes, we stay focused on our path. Most of the times, we do not consume our break time as our priority are the guests. We wanted them to maximize the time and really enjoy well. We will arrange our breaks accordingly to the traffic flow and then will work on rotations with the other life guards so we always have life guards ready and able.
As the day progresses, I will walk around the water park beach and shorelines and monitor the duties carried out by other lifeguards. I use the walkie-talkie to check on the other areas as well as visit the first aid room to ensure all supplies are ready for any emergencies. I will also make sure the life guards on the Inflatable water park are moving around flowing with the crowds. I have the best perspective on this situation as I stand on the beach. Sometimes I will use my binoculars to examine closer the situation on crowd movements across the park.
Many times, we will skip lunch because we receive a lot of guests who like to play. That’s why we water up and eat well in our downtime. It’s much like an athlete in a long game. All dedication requires sacrifice, it may be little or a lot, but sacrifice is an indispensable ingredient that serves as our investment in everyday work.
Later in the day, I will head down again to the water park and monitor operations. Meet up with the lifeguard team mid-day, to ensure that there are no hiccups on our equipment or in the guest environment. Air pressure and connection quality on the inflatables are also visually checked again.
Around 3:00pm, I will meet up with the lifeguard team, housekeeping supervisor and first aider to discuss on the day's operation so far and plan for works and training to be carried out for the second half of the day.
At 4:00pm I will continue assisting the guests as they move on to change and leave the park. We will Do another aqua park walk around to check air pressures as the cool change in weather can cause the inflatables to soften or to look for the errors of the day and inform the technical team if there are any urgent work to be attended to. If more air pressure is needed, then I dispatch a 2 man team to enter the inflatable boat with pumps and generator to top up as necessary.
Around 6:00 pm, the day is cooling and the light in the sky is dimming as we enter sunset. I check on all lifeguards and thier get their station reports before giving the call to shut down. Before we shut down, we let the last guests finish off their time allotment. We actually watch these last few very close as the sky is changing, and we want to literally follow them in their last few minutes of play.
As these last guests exit the inflatable water park adventure, we know get the remaining life guards to do a complete on-water walk around the inflatable structure. We make sure no guests are still playing on the water park or in the water surrounding the water park. We also do a quick inspection on the inflatables and the inflatables connection points. Then each life guard will send hand signals for the ok and clear sign. If any problems or issue, they will blow their whistle in 3 tweets to get my attention to which I will respond and act accordingly.
At 6:45 pm I will now meet with immediate operations manager and brief him on the day's operation and at the same time, receive his instruction on works and approval. We officially release all life guards for the day.
7:00 pm I leave for Leave for home and ponder on the excitement and joy that the guess had received. I have dinner, prayers and watch television and at the same time thinking what's up for work tomorrow.
Apply some cream to my feet and go to sleep. That’s my day in an aqua park life guard!
At Aqua Play Parks, we worked very long shifts in the heat of a summer. The breaks were few and far between. The days went by long yet it was a fun time seeing everyone safe and happy in your pool.
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