Volunteer surf lifesavers completed 74 rescues at the region’s 17 beaches from Stanwell Park to Windang. 

Twenty-five rescues were completed at Austinmer, while 22 rescues were done at Thirroul.

Surf Life Saving Illawarra director Anthony Turner said lifesavers also carried out about a thousand preventative actions.

“That was the biggest thing today – just continuous roving patrols warning people to swim between the red and yellow flags,” Mr Turner said.

To put Monday’s 74 rescues into perspective, last year surf lifesavers – who patrol Sundays and public holidays – completed 373 for the entire season.

“With the ongoing heat, school holidays, a public holiday; it just all combined to be a massive crowd,” he said.

“There was tens and tens of thousands of people –  I just couldn’t believe how many people were at the beaches today [Monday].”

Late afternoon, five people were pulled from a rip at Sharkey’s Beach, Coledale, after members of the public alerted surf lifesavers. It is understood all were OK.

Mr Turner said those who needed rescuing were all retrieved quickly. 

“Lifesavers were pretty proactive, they were out in the water,” he said.

The high numbers at Austinmer and Thirroul were partly due to the proximity of car parks to the beaches, with people getting out of their cars and into the water away from the flags, Mr Turner said.

“Flash rips” and a lack of sandbanks didn’t help the situation, with many people drifting outside the patrolled zone.

“It’s just a lot more gutters, deeper gutters, and flash rips, that’s what seemed to have caused it and because of the people swimming outside the flagged area … that used a lot of our resources,” he said. 

“Trying to control big crowds in one area does get very difficult.”

Surprisingly, there were no rescues at the popular North Wollongong Beach.

Meanwhile, a number of people were treated by paramedics for bluebottle stings, including two people who had severe reactions and required oxygen at Fairy Meadow.

Lifesavers also provided assistance to people suffering heat-related illnesses.

Temperatures surpassed the mid-30s in parts of the Illawarra, with maximums of 36.4 degrees and 35.3 degrees recorded at Albion Park and Bellambi Point, respectively.

A maximum of 30 degrees is forecast in Wollongong on Tuesday, before a cool change drops temperatures to a balmy 20 degrees on Wednesday.

Albion Park – 36.4°C 

Bellambi Point – 35.3°C 

Kiama – 29.1°C

Moss Vale – 29.4°C 

Nowra – 36.1°C

ALBION PARK

7am – 9.7°C

9am – 21.8°C

Noon – 34.4°C

2pm – 35.5°C

3pm – 36.2°C

(PEAK – 36.4 at 3.01pm)

4pm – 35.9°C

5pm – 35.2°C

6pm – 29.4°C

7pm – 25.9°C

BELLAMBI POINT

7am – 18.4°C

9am – 21.9°C

Noon – 30.4°C

1pm – 34.2°C

(PEAK – 35.3 at 1.09pm)

2pm – 25.4°C

3pm – 25.3°C

4pm – 24.4°C

5pm – 24.4°C

6pm – 23.5°C

7pm – 22.6°C