Tragically, Victoria recorded 26 drowning deaths over the 2018/19 summer, only two deaths below the 1997/98 record of 28 drownings. This comes as record numbers of people flock to the Great Ocean Road, with annual visitation predicted to rise from six million to 8.6 million in the next 10 years, driven largely by Chinese visitors.
As part of a federally-funded initiative led by Life Saving Victoria (LSV) to make Victorian beaches safer, we are pleased to announce an integrated water safety initiative between G’day Friends, Life Saving Victoria (LSV) and several local governments.
G’Day Friends Quick Response (QR) codes are being added to water safety signs on the Great Ocean Road as part of a trial to deliver water safety information educational resources to Chinese tourists. Scanning the code on a smartphone brings up vital location-based beach safety information designed to save lives.
While not heavily adopted in Australia, QR codes are very popular with Chinese visitors who are currently the largest tourism group to Australia, and specifically to the Great Ocean Road. In the last 12 months, 1.4 million Chinese tourists visited Australia; more than 2 million annually are expected in the next few years.
As part of the initial trial, G’Day Friends QR codes will be placed at Torquay, Eastern View, Anglesea, Fairhaven, Lorne and Apollo Bay.
Read the Surf Coast Times article about this important and exciting initiative.
To learn more about how QR codes are helping Chinese visitors and the Aussie businesses that serve them, go to gdayfriends.com.
