As the weather starts to turn warm in Austin, The Parks and Recreation Department’s Aquatics Division looks forward to offering pool services to our community. As COVID-19 cases moderate, emphasis will shift towards expanding pool access through training and hiring lifeguards while observing and implementing comprehensive safety procedures for both staff and visitors.
Being a lifeguard means prioritizing safety above all else. With guidance from local offices such as Austin Public Health, Center For Disease Control (CDC), and top-tier nationally recognized training protocols from Star-Guard Elite (SGE), our goal is to keep staff safe while offering safe services and facilities to the public.
Lifeguard Training in times of COVID-19
- In order to maintain 6 feet social distance, courses will be limited to 5 participants per instructor, with a maximum of 10 participants. Participants are kept in the same group throughout the training course.
- The courses will be held both indoors and outdoors. However, most of the instruction will be outdoors.
- All participants are required to wear a mask during training except when practicing in-water rescues or CPR scenarios.
- Following guidelines set by the CDC and SGE, manikins and any other rescue equipment (rescue tubes, backboards, etc.) are sanitized between each usage using alcohol wipes or a bleach solution. Manikin lungs are also replaced between each usage.
- There will be no instances where mouth to mouth contact is required. CPR requires the need for lifeguards to administer ventilation breaths as opposed to standard compression-only technique. In these cases, one-way breather masks are used between the unresponsive person and the lifeguard. Practice of this lifesaving technique will be done with medical-grade manikins.
We are not beginning in-person training or hiring while the City of Austin is in Stage 4. We hope to begin training new and returning Lifeguards very soon for Spring/Summer 2021. We are currently accepting applications for 600+ lifegaurd positions so that we can be ready when the time comes. Training and certification must be completed in order to be hired for a position.
Want to learn more about becoming a lifeguard with the City of Austin? Visit LifeGuardAustin.com.