Map your beach safety this summer

Map your beach safety this summer

Aussie beach goers get the update from Surf Life Saving Australia and Whereis

For the first time ever, Australian beach goers have access to the best surf and fishing locations, hazardous swimming beaches, beach patrol times and turn-by-turn directions to the beach in one ideal location. A new partnership between Surf Life Saving Australia and Australian mapping company Whereis means all this information will be available on a map at www.whereis.com.

"As Australian families flock to the coast this summer, it's important they have access to information on safe swimming and surfing spots. Whether it's a new beach, or the annual family retreat, whereis.com has surf, swimming and fishing information to make sure Australians stay safe this summer," commented Group Manager of whereis.com, Carl Rigoni. "People using the site are able to request driving or walking directions from their holiday house to the beach," continued Mr Rigoni.

Data collected by SLSA covering more than 300 of Australia's most popular swimming, surfing and fishing spots will be available on whereis.com, with beach goers even able to send the beach information to compatible GPS units or mobile phones by selecting 'send to GPS' or 'send to phone' on whereis.com. Maps and directions can be sent to the device making it easier than ever to find and take local beach information on the go.

Surf Life Saving Australia Group General Manager, Michael Hornby, said partnering with Whereis means Australian beach goers can make informed choices about beaches this summer and therefore avoid unpredictable conditions.

"Whether you're interested in a safe beach for the family, the best fishing spots or surfing breaks, you can now make an informed choice about which beach best suits your needs and then request turn-by-turn directions to get you there," said Mr Hornby.

The site also displays photos of some popular beaches and can be viewed simply by clicking the "beaches" button on the whereis.com site to have local beach conditions displayed on the map.

309 of Australia's most popular beaches now appear within the whereis.com website including beaches at Bondi, St Kilda, Mooloolaba, Maroochydore, Bronte, Coogee, Manly, Tamarama, Clovelly, Freshwater, Cottesloe and Noosa.

Both Whereis and Telstra are sponsors of the Surf Lifesaving Australia association in 2009.

About Whereis:
Whereis^ is Australia's leading provider of digital mapping and location-based content. It is owned by Sensis, a fully owned subsidiary of Telstra. Whereis^ mapping data is the power behind most of Australia's online, in-car, portable, and wireless navigation products. It is also the power behind leading portable navigation products and most of New Zealand's in-car products. Whereis Mobile can be accessed on Telstra's Next G network and is free to browse for all Telstra customers.