According to the spokesman for the Luanda Provincial Command of the Civil Protection and Fire Service, Faustino Mingues, three of the fatal cases (between 14 and 16 years old) were registered in the municipality of Talatona, on the beaches of Benfica and Futungo, and the rest (18 and 26 years old) in the municipality of Luanda, on the beaches of the districts of Ingombota and Samba.
Faustino Mingues, who presented to Lusa the balance of the firefighters' operation over the weekend, in Luanda, also reported 18 rescues on the verge of drowning, 12 of which in the district of Ingombota, mostly teenagers.
The official opening of public beaches and swimming pools in the country took place last Saturday, March 5, in light of the new presidential decree on the situation of public calamity, after more than two years of ban aimed at containing the spread of covid-19.
According to the authorities, the presentation of a vaccination card and/or vaccination certificate is one of the requirements for accessing beaches across the country.
Videos circulating on social media illustrate considerable floods of people on the beaches of Luanda, especially on Ilha de Luanda, urban district of Ingombota.
Public access to the beaches, according to Faustino Mingues, was preceded by awareness-raising campaigns at the community level, nautical, foot, speedboat and motorized patrols on the 45 beaches controlled and cataloged by firefighters in Luanda.
Firefighters in Luanda control 45 beaches, including 22 prohibited and 23 with authorized access, but over the weekend, bathers also "invaded" the prohibited beaches.
"We can characterize that the long weekend was worrying, in fact we were aware that it would not be an easy task, and the responsibility would not simply be the firefighters, but the population in general", he said.
"What we noticed was the insistence and negligence on the part of some bathers to be present at some prohibited beaches", stressed Mingues.
Asked about the level of control of bathers in the face of the flood, especially in the context of measures of public calamity situation, the spokesman for the firefighters noted that this was an activity coordinated with other forces.
In addition to the firefighters, national police personnel and teams from the Multisectoral Commission for the Prevention and Combat of Covid-19 worked along the beaches of Luanda over the weekend.
But, even so, he observed, "there were difficulties, because some people violated what are the rules, but it is also a matter of conscience of the citizen, because we are still talking about the proliferation of the pandemic and also the risk of drowning that is imminent in these places".
"That is why most of the fatalities and those who were saved were teenagers between 14 and 18 years old, hence it is important for parents to redouble their attention in accessing these spaces", concluded Faustino Minguês.
