A lucky escape which involved a father and three young children in Gozo this month has led to the development of #ripmywave, a new sea swimmer knowledge sharing initiative which launches today across the Maltese Islands.

The organisers of this new initiative explained that the group was caught out by a series of “rogue” waves on an otherwise perfectly calm day at Ghar Qawqla beach in Gozo, which saw the children being swept by the waves across the rocks and the youngest, aged 5, pulled under the waves by a strong undertow.

“Some quick thinking by the boy’s father, good visibility with goggles and help from a bystander, meant all reached shore safely.” Read the nail-biting full story by clicking here.

They said that, “interestingly, after we were all safe and sound and before the shock of what could have happened to all of us really kicked in, two local elders on the beach told us that ‘freak’ waves such as those we experienced hitting the shore, are not uncommon in Gozo at midday, and at around 5pm.”

Martin McDonald, creator of the #ripmywave campaign, said, “in the space of 5 minutes the tumult was over, and the water was calm and beginning to be filled again with swimmers.”

He added that “bizarrely it was as if nothing life-threatening had happened. Yet right there, in that strange return to normality, lies the danger for future swimmers. Human nature is to shield ourselves from bad news in the belief “It will never happen to me! but the fact remains that experiences are often the best ways to learn.”

And so, #ripmywave was born. Martin explained that, “the only actionable and immediate defence against the freak waves is a word-of-mouth campaign to be shared by all of us, among Maltese and International citizens and shared with millions of visiting tourists, to avoid the unnecessary deaths we hear about each year in Gozo and around the world, usually close to shore and involving big waves, rip tides and undercurrents in bay areas, freaky or otherwise.”Ripmywave.com is a platform for swimmers to share their wave experiences to enable the organisers of this initiative to determine if there is in fact a pattern to rogue waves, but also to raise awareness, particularly among visitors to the islands about the immense energy the sea can unleash.

Martin added that, “sharing #ripmywave could help reduce preventable drownings around our islands, particularly now we’re in the shoulder season when summer tourists can underestimate the power and deadliness of the seemingly welcoming sea.”

Wave submissions are shared on the website and plotted on the #ripmywave Map to build a body of experiences.

“There is a sign warning about swimming in rough waves, but if the rough waves are momentary, how can we protect lives against this? The answer is simple: talk about these localised, momentary and violent wave effects, understand the risks and be on your guard. Knowledge is the answer,” concluded Martin McDonald.

#ripmywave said that it is looking for partners to implement a wave monitoring programme in the Spring of 2020.

Any organisations wishing to come on board are invited to get in touch at hello@ripmywave.com. “Thank you – Together we can rip this.”

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