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In 2016, research published in Accident Analysis and Prevention found that 40 percent of the 770 drownings from the past decade had been related to drinking. In fact, 70 percent of those who died would not have passed the breath-testing measures given to drivers.But despite this, the stigma around drunk swimming is nowhere near as pronounced as getting behind the wheel after a boozy Sunday session. On the contrary, the image of a languid day by the water, drink in hand, is viewed as ideal.
In response to this apparent apathy around alcohol-related drownings, researchers from James Cook University and the Royal Life Saving Society will be breathalyzing swimmers this summer at popular north Queensland waterholes.While they won’t be able to stop swimmers entering the water (this isn’t a police effort) they do hope to gather more information related to drinking and swimming in Australia.Speaking to the Brisbane Times, Amy Peden, Royal Life Saving Society national manager of research and policy, explained, “We won’t be arresting or getting anyone in trouble if they blow a high reading, in fact we expect quite high readings.”She went on to elaborate on our country’s troubling relationship with drinking and water: “We are a nation of binge drinkers and we have a culture of drinking around the water and going out on the boat, or fishing and so unfortunately it does seem to go hand in hand with our culture but hopefully we can understand why these people take these risks.”Our advice? Try a kombucha in the shallows instead, and save the harder stuff for when you’re back home.Follow VICE Australia on Twitter.
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