Ocean Safety Lifeguards

Our Ocean Safety Lifeguards

The beaches of Cronulla are situated on the Bate Bay coastline in the south eastern corner of Sydney. The area covers approximately five kilometres of sandy beaches as well as two kilometres of rocky coastline and five tidal pools situated at Kurnell, Cronulla Beach, Shelley Beach, Oak Park and Gunnamatta Baths. These beaches service more than 6,000,000 beach users per year.

Our Ocean Safety lifeguards wear blue and white uniforms and work 365 days a year. They are highly trained in rescue and resuscitation techniques and patrol North Cronulla, Elouera and Wanda beaches daily from October to April, whilst Cronulla beach is patrolled all year round.   

Council Ocean Safety lifeguards also provide school education activities at North Cronulla from May to September and have two beach wheelchairs and a Mobi Mat available to the community to use. 

Patrolled Beaches

Cronulla beaches are patrolled by council's professional Ocean Safety Lifeguards as well as Volunteer Surf Lifesavers. The two groups work together during summer to ensure the safety of the public while swimming at Cronulla’s four designated swimming areas - Cronulla beach, North Cronulla beach, Elouera beach and Wanda beach.

Ocean Safety Lifeguards patrol our beaches at different times during the year.  Remember to always swim between the red and yellow flags. No flags = No swim.

Beach Patrol Times

November to March (Summer season) - Cronulla, North Cronulla, Elouera and Wanda

• Monday to Sunday - 8:00am to 6:00pm

December to January (Summer season - School Holiday Period) - Greenhills

• Monday to Sunday - 10:00am to 5:30pm

April - Cronulla, North Cronulla, Elouera and Wanda

• Monday to Sunday - 8:00am to 5:00pm

May - September (Winter season) - Cronulla Beach ONLY

• Monday to Sunday - 7:00am - 4:00pm 

May - September (Winter season) - North Cronulla Beach ONLY

• School Education Program only ( No flags = No swim)

October - Cronulla, North Cronulla, Elouera and Wanda

• Monday to Sunday - 8:00am to 5:00pm 

How to recognise an ocean safety lifeguard or surf lifesaver

Council's ocean safety lifeguards and volunteer surf lifesavers wear different coloured uniforms, however they can both help to keep you safe at the beach. 

Council's Ocean Safety Lifeguard (left - wearing blue and white) and Volunteer Surf Lifesaver (right - wearing red and yellow).

Emergency Response Beacon

Sutherland Shire Council, in partnership with Surf Life Saving NSW, have provided an Emergency Response Beacon (ERB) located at Greenhill’s Beach (Track 6). The ERB provides an instant communication link between the location and lifesaving services during emergencies, helping to reduce response times.

This technology uses a voice intercom with SMS on-call functionality and a camera. By pressing the emergency button a call connects you to Surf Life Saving NSW State Operations Centre where an operator will respond and relay rescue information to the appropriate Lifeguard/Lifesaving service. The camera will also activate to allow the operator to view the individual making the call, while at the same time SMS messages are sent to Lifeguards and SLSNSW staff, alerting them to the rescue. The ERB is placed on the beach at 7am each day and collected at 4pm.

Lifeguard Observation Tower

Located adjacent to the Emergency Response Beacon (ERB) at Track 6  is the Greenhill’s Lifeguard Observation tower. This temporary lifeguard tower provides an extension of the ocean safety lifeguard services provided at council’s beaches and will be in operation during peak season based on demand.

Beach Wheelchairs

Council has two (2) beach wheelchairs available for community use.  The wheelchairs can be used on the sand and in the water, and provide people with the freedom to enjoy beach activities. They are free of charge and available on short term loan, 7 days a week from 8am to 4pm in summer and 10am to 2pm in the winter.

Bookings are essential and can be made online.

Learn more about our beach wheelchairs or make a booking

Volunteer Surf Lifesavers 

Volunteer surf lifesavers can be seen wearing red and yellow uniforms and assist council lifeguards with beaches patrol on weekends and public holidays during peak school holidays and summer season. The surf lifesavers are all members of Surf Life Saving Australia and belong to one of the Bate Bay Surf Lifesaving Clubs - Cronulla, North Cronulla, Elouera or Wanda.

Cronulla's beaches are proudly supported by these Surf Lifesaving Clubs that run a range of community based activities including nippers, surf patrols, sporting events, training and accreditation activities.

For information on club programs, function hire and memberships, contact the local surf lifesaving clubs.

Cronulla
9523 5300
North Cronulla
9523 5846
Elouera
9523 7295
Wanda
9523 4343

Surf Patrol Information - visit Beachsafe