Cape Town: Beach safety operations in the city yield positive returns. Identikidz hit triple digits over the long weekend of the New Year to record its best performance ever.
Reportedly, the lifeguards and other emergency services were kept busy in the surf, but the drowning statistics were recorded lower as compared to the previous season.
The Identikidz Programme has registered 101,780 children at participating beaches over the peak festive season with an increase of 13.5% in comparison to the previous year when 89,689 children were registered during the same period.
In this season, 227 children were lost and reunited and five were handed over to the Department of Social Development (DSD) as their caregivers were not located by end of the beach day, in comparison to 256 reunions and 11 handovers to DSD, recorded last year.
As per the sources, Identikidz Programme has been implemented at 15 busiest beaches of Cape Town over the festive season. It is implemented at Maiden’s Cove on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
Beaches along the False Bay coast recorded the highest number of registrations, especially from Strand, Strandfontein and Muizenberg. The programme concludes on Sunday, Jan 18, 2026.
Since October 2025, there have been 23 non-fatal drownings at the beaches of Cape Town. Each of them could have ended in tragedy if lifeguards had not rescued them. The data shows, five fatal drownings, three of which were bathing related and two others which are the subject of police investigations were recorded along the coastline of Cape Town.
All fatal drownings were observed outside of the designated bathing areas. Out of 23 non-fatal drowning incidents, three incidents occurred along the False Bay Coast, four at Strand, four at Clovelly and three at Fish Hoek. Over half of the incidents involved children between the ages of six and seventeen.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Services and Health – Councillor Francine Higham said that the statistics are a stark reminder that while the coastline is a wonderful attraction over summer, it needs to be approached with care and consideration.
Higham stated that she wants to commend each and every person who has had a hand in the festive season operations from staff members to beachgoers and parents. Support of people for drowning prevention and child safety initiatives is a key reason that why they have experienced one of the safest seasons yet.
She that summer is not over yet, infact they are expecting another bumper beach weekend as the holiday season winds down. She encouraged and reminded everyone to continue keeping safety at top of mind and to use the resources that they have made available in support of public safety.