Made up of some 1,190 coral reef islands, the Republic of Maldives is a country that has thrived on the blessings of the sea. At the same time, however, that same sea can be a threat, as it was when the tsunami resulting from the Sumatra earthquake in December 2004 inundated all the islands for a brief period. That constant threat has brought attention to the potential of Yamaha WaveRunners as rescue craft and prompted the focus of the recent WaveRunner Riding Academy course, which was attended by 38 participants from the National Security Service, the Maldives Police, airline companies, representatives of resort sports centers and the Swimming Association.
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Because many of these participants were using a personal watercraft for the first time, the course began with a classroom session in which the basic functions and rules of use for PWCs were explained. After that, each participant was given Practical Riding Training in which they actually rode the WaveRunners. This was followed by instruction in rescue methods and how to pull a drowning person out of the water, etc.
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In the classroom session, the advantages of the PWC as a rescue vehicle were also stressed, including the facts that it has no propeller, it can be used in shallow waters, it can be brought right alongside the swimmer/victim and its outstanding inherent maneuverability. Also, thanks to the cooperation of the local Yamaha distributor staff, a demonstration of a WaveRunner being used to rescue a drowning swimmer was held at a hotel wharf to successfully convey the great effectiveness of PWCs as rescue craft.
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