Saturday 4 February 2012

We have Safety Tips for:

	Plan your trip
	Tell someone your plans
	Be aware of the weather
	Know your limits
	Take sufficient supplies
	Mountain Radios, Tranceivers & Personal Locator Beacons
	Outdoor First Aid Essentials
	Maps
	Avalanche Awareness
	Snow Code for Snowsports
	Firearms Safety
	Survival Essentials
	River Safety

Safety Tips - River Safety

Rivers are one of the greatest hazards in the New Zealand Outdoors. Errors of judgement, often have serious consequences. Before you or your party attempt to cross a river, there are questions you need to ask.

1. Should we cross?
If in doubt, stay out.

2 Where do we cross?
The choice of the safest place to cross is vital. Try to view the river from a high bank. You may be able to see gravel spits or sandbanks just below the surface and get some idea of the depth and position of channels.

3. How do we cross?
Use mutual support methods. The more people in the party, the more strength there is for crossing and for supporting anyone who slips or falls. All river-crossing methods have their advantages and disadvantages and, in difficult conditions, no method is absolutely safe.

Knowing when to cross a river is not a black and white decision, it’s about good judgement. We advise that you attend a Mountain Safety River Safety Course to learn how to anticipate what might go wrong and therefore recognise and avoid potential problems.

Find out more from our river safety pamphlet available on our resources page, or join a course in your area via our training page.

To safety enjoy rivers, it's important to respect their hazardous nature, rivers account for one-third of all New Zealand drownings.

MSC River Safety Bulletin December 2011

The New Zealand Mountain Safety Council (MSC) was invited to consider the recent article discussing river crossing techniques published by the Federated Mountain Clubs of New Zealand (FMC) in the December 2011 edition of their publication ‘The Bulletin’. The statement of response below has been developed through consultation with the MSC Bushcraft Technical Advisory Committee and approved for distribution.

Click here to download the MSC River Safety Bulletin - December 2011

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