The silent "feats" of the rescue team at Ha Tinh beach

Early in the morning of June 19, at Xuan Thanh beach (Nghi Xuan), female tourist NTH (45 years old, residing in Tien Dien town) was suddenly swept away by waves, more than 100m from shore. In the midst of the whirlpool, while the victim was panicking and exhausted, a group of tourists nearby discovered her and shouted. Without hesitation, Mr. Dau Thuong - Captain of the Rescue Team of Xuan Thanh Tourist Area and his members immediately rushed into the sea, approached and brought the victim safely to shore.

On the morning of June 19, the Xuan Thanh Tourist Area Rescue Team successfully rescued a female tourist who was swept away by waves.

“It was around 6am, the waves weren’t big but the wind had changed direction creating a strong current. She swam far away and encountered the tide so she couldn’t swim in. Hearing the shouts, we immediately took action. If we had been a few minutes later, we might not have been able to save her in time,” Mr. Thuong shared.

Ông Đậu Thường - Đội trưởng Đội Cứu hộ, cứu nạn KDL Xuân Thành. — Mr. Dau Thuong - Captain of Xuan Thanh Tourist Area Rescue Team.

Just a few days earlier, on the morning of June 14, also at Xuan Thanh tourist beach, the team saved the lives of two elderly male tourists from Nghe An who drowned while swimming in the sea.

Xuan Thanh Tourist Area Rescue Team saved a drowning male tourist on June 14.

At Thien Cam Tourist Area beach (Cam Xuyen) on the morning of June 18, 2 female and 1 male tourists from Hanoi drowned while swimming at the beach north of the tourist area. Thanks to the timely response of the Thien Cam Tourist Area Rescue Team, all 3 were saved. Previously, on the afternoon of June 14, 3 male tourists swimming at Thien Cam beach were swept away from the safety warning area by waves. Detecting the distress signal, members of the rescue team and 1 local resident promptly and successfully rescued them.

Image of tourists being swept away from the safe area at Thien Cam beach on the afternoon of June 14 by the Thien Cam Tourist Area Rescue Team. *Photo: Provided by local people.*

As a member of the Rescue Team of Thien Cam Tourist Area, participating in saving the lives of 6 tourists in both recent drowning incidents at Thien Cam beach, Mr. Nguyen Tong Lien (70 years old, residing in Thien Cam town, Cam Xuyen) said: “The cause of both drowning incidents was due to the subjectivity of the people and tourists. In the incident on the afternoon of June 14, the sea waves were big and we used loudspeakers to call for warnings, but 2 young men and 1 parent still deliberately swam in the sea and swam out of the safety warning limit, leading to being swept away by the waves and exhausted. In the incident on the morning of June 18, the tourists who went swimming early did not comply with the use of life jackets and life jackets, leading to drowning.”

In addition to Xuan Thanh and Thien Cam, at Xuan Hai beach (Loc Ha town, Thach Ha) on the afternoon of June 14, authorities also promptly saved a child who drowned while swimming in the sea here.

Police of Loc Ha town (Thach Ha) and local people promptly rescued a child who was swept away by waves at Xuan Hai beach on the afternoon of June 14.

In order to minimize tragic accidents occurring at beaches, recently, all levels, sectors and tourism management boards in the province have proactively and synchronously deployed many solutions: from propaganda, safety warnings to improving the quality of rescue teams, arranging regular duty on the beach.

At Thien Cam Tourist Area, the Rescue Team was established in early March 2025 with 8 members. They are all good swimmers and have experience in handling emergency situations. The team works from 5am to 9pm every day, with no weekends off.

Thien Cam Tourist Area Rescue Team is always ready to rescue people in distress at sea.

Mr. Tran Quoc Nhat - Deputy Head of Thien Cam Tourist Area Management Board said: "We pay special attention to selecting people with skills, health, and sense of responsibility; at the same time, we have appropriate remuneration policies so that they can work with peace of mind. In addition, we coordinate with the government, police, and youth union to regularly organize propaganda through loudspeakers, install warning signs, and divide safe bathing areas to raise tourists' awareness of prevention."

At Xuan Thanh beach, a 6-member rescue team is also on duty during peak hours. In addition to direct rescue duties, the members also constantly remind and warn residents and tourists not to swim far from shore, not to go swimming when there is a red warning sign, or when the weather is cloudy, the waves are strong, etc.

Rescue Team members warn tourists on Xuan Thanh beach on the afternoon of June 19, 2025.

Ms. Vo Thi Thu Hien - Head of Tourism Management Department (Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ha Tinh) said: “Rescue work is a particularly important content that we always thoroughly convey to localities and management boards of tourist areas and destinations, especially sea tourism, to implement fully, seriously and effectively. Because, along with building good services, ensuring the safety of tourists and people at destinations must always be put first. We acknowledge and commend the rescue teams, functional forces, people and management boards of sea tourism areas and destinations who have promptly saved the lives of many tourists and people in recent incidents”.

Ha Tinh beach tourism is entering its peak period with thousands of tourists flocking to the beaches every day. Amidst this wave of tourism, the silent examples of the rescue team become even more meaningful, contributing to writing the story of a Ha Tinh that is safe, friendly and responsible towards tourists.