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Bruce ‘Hoppo’ Hopkins, star of the TV show Bondi Rescue, is usually found in the surf at Bondi Beach, but this September you will find him in the pool at Birrong Leisure and Aquatic Centre.

Hoppo will be hopping in the pool, in partnership with City of Canterbury Bankstown, to run a series of sessions teaching CBCity residents how to float.

Hoppo is passionate about water safety and emphasises that floating can be the key to survival in the water. He has set up his own not-for-profit, Surf Educators International, to promote the skill

“If you don’t know how to float and how simple it can be, you tend to battle against the water. Floating gives you time to think, rather than panicking and becoming exhausted. If you can relax and float, then you can wait calmly to be rescued,” Hoppo says.

Canterbury-Bankstown Mayor Khal Asfour is delighted to bring the program to our community.

“This program is particularly important to Canterbury-Bankstown, where so many new members of the community arrive with no experience of living around water. In Australia, water is everywhere and every summer we see the horrific headlines about lives lost. I don’t want to see any more of those headlines, so I urge our non-swimmers to take advantage of this opportunity and learn how to float,” Mayor Asfour says.

The program takes place on Sunday 25 September, with one-hour sessions at 9am, 10.15am and 11.30am.  It’s open to adults and children (aged six and up) at cost of $20 per person. Spots are limited, so don’t miss this opportunity. Book by calling Birrong Leisure and Aquatic Centre on 9707 5500.