The Wasserwacht (; ''water watch'' or ''water guard'') is a German lifeguard service. It is one of the five voluntary societies of the

German Red Cross The German Red Cross (german: Deutsches Rotes Kreuz ; DRK) is the national Red Cross Society in Germany. With 4 million members, it is the third largest Red Cross society in the world. The German Red Cross offers a wide range of services with ...

. The Wasserwacht is a non-profit organization made up of on volunteers.

Tasks

The main task of the Wasserwacht is the prevention of drowning. The Wasserwacht's activities encompass many areas, including:

Swimming (Schwimmen)

A task of the Wasserwacht is the training of nonswimmers and the continuation of swimming education among the population.

Badges A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fi ...

are awarded based on the level of education, and begin with the "Seepferdchen" (literally ''seahorse''; the early certificate) up to the Gold German Swimming Badge.

Rescue Swimming (Rettungsschwimmen)

This group is responsible for the education and training of lifeguards,

swiftwater rescue Swift water rescue (also called "white water rescue") is a subset of technical rescue dealing in white water river conditions. Due to the added pressure of moving water, swift water rescue involves the use of specially trained personnel, ropes an ...

rs and

rescue swimmer Rescue swimmer is a designation given to rescue specialists, most commonly in the service of the military. Rescue swimmers usually are charged with the rescue, assessment, and rendering of medical aid to persons in distress in the sea, on the land ...

s. It cooperates with German

civil protection Civil defense ( en, region=gb, civil defence) or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from man-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, mit ...

and German fire services, especially concerning floods. * Teaching of swimming, rescue swimming (

German rescue swimming badge The German rescue swimming badge (German: ''Deutsches Rettungsschwimmabzeichen'') is awarded by the Wasserwacht of the German Red Cross and the DLRG for proficiency in rescue swimming skills. The German rescue swimming badge is awarded in bronze, ...

) and

first aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with either a minor or serious illness or injury, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery. It includes initial int ...

to the population, especially youth, in schools and federations * Organization of

competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...

s in life saving

Boating (Motorboot)

The Wasserwacht provides live-saving services on most lakes in as well as on the coast of Germany. Therefore, they require fast and powerful transportation in case of an emergency. The Wasserwacht oversees regattas and sailing meetings.

Rescue diving (Rettungstauchen)

Rescue divers are needed for the salvaging of goods, vehicles, garbage, and corpses. The education of a rescue diver usually takes one to two years. Each active rescue diver of the Wasserwacht is required to undergo a dive-medical investigation annually.

Environmental protection (Naturschutz)

A task of the Wasserwacht is helping to keep

nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...

and waterways clean. In order to accomplish these tasks the Wasserwacht educates interested people with qualified technical abilities from the other departments of the German Red Cross.

History

The

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

n city Regensburg is considered to be the birthplace of the lifeguard service of the German Red Cross. In 1883, during a flood,

aids were used for the first time. In the following years, "Sanität und Wasserwehrkolonnen" (medical and water rescue stations) developed along the coast and inland waters. After World War II, the Wasserwacht, as a government organization, was forbidden by the allied military administration. But the

Bavarian Red Cross The German Red Cross (german: Deutsches Rotes Kreuz ; DRK) is the national Red Cross Society in Germany. With 4 million members, it is the third largest Red Cross society in the world. The German Red Cross offers a wide range of services with ...

n regional organization of the German Red Cross, received permission to resume its work. Other regional organizations followed the example of Bavaria and reinstated their lifeguard services.

Schnelleinsatzgruppen

For the execution of emergency services on water, the Wasserwacht maintains Schnelleinsatzgruppen (emergency response units). The groups are usually equipped with special lifeguard and emergency service machinery.

External links

www.wasserwacht.de

References

{{Authority control International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement Swimming in Germany Non-profit organisations based in Berlin Emergency services in Germany Lifesaving organizations