Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin launches life jacket loaner station at Oconee River Greenway

Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin installs a free life jacket station at the Oconee River Greenway to promote water safety.

MILLEDGEVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Ahead of Memorial Day weekend, Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin has launched a new Life Jacket Loaner Station at the Oconee River Greenway Park to help prevent drownings and promote water safety for families visiting the river.

Thomas Goss, the Chief Operating Officer at Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin spoke about the importance of this project.

“If we just stop one drowning or prevent one drowning, then we feel like we’re very successful with this project,” he said.

The effort comes after paramedics responded to multiple drownings at the park in recent year.

“We have a history here in this community of drownings here at this particular location,” Goss said. “The water may look calm if you look out beyond the boat ramp, but under the surface, it’s not calm. When the dam is opened, the water gets an undercurrent with it, so this is a high risk area for drowning. So that’s why this area was selected.”

In addition to providing life jackets and safety rings, Atrium Health Navicent is also sharing water safety tips. They warn that diving into rivers with rocky bottoms can lead to serious injuries, including spinal injuries, concussions and broken bones.

Bud Owens, the Area Vice President of Mobile Medicine and EMS, urges the public to remain aware of the hazards in the water.

“We need to remember the dangers that we face in waters,” he said. “And then secondly, to make sure that we have that available resource there for the community to utilize if they don’t have their own.”

EMS will be checking the life jacket station daily to ensure that enough vests are available for visitors to the river.