Council is comfortable with missing life buoys

The City of Melbourne does not consider missing life buoys around Docklands’ waterfront to be a safety hazard.

Council has 18 life buoys deployed across Docklands, which include nine housed in specially designed holders in public spaces and six located in private marinas.

On May 19 Docklands News observed more than 50 per cent of the public life buoys were either missing or not accessible.

Four of the life buoys were missing from their holders, while the fifth was located behind fencing on Victoria Promenade, which was in place due to the wharf rectification work.

A City of Melbourne spokesperson said it was good practice to have life rings deployed on public waterfronts but not a legal obligation.

When asked by Docklands News whether it considered the missing buoys a safety hazard, a council spokesperson said: “Lifebuoys are one component to waterfront safety that includes ladders, grab holders, kickers, lighting, passive and active zones.  All safety systems would have to fail for it to be considered a safety hazard.”

The spokesperson said council was aware of the missing life buoys and was taking steps to replace them.

According to the spokesperson, the missing life buoys had been stolen and would cost approximately $60 each to replace.

The life buoys had been replaced by the time Docklands News went to print.