Water Safety and Drowning Prevention

"It was just a few seconds!" Unfortunately that is all the time it takes for a person to drown. In 2001, 859 children ages 14 and under died as a result of unintentional drowning and, in 2002, an estimated 2,700 children in this age group were treated in hospital emergency rooms for near-drowning (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Statistics). Most of these children drown in their own backyard swimming pool, but others drown in buckets, bathtubs, toilets, dog water bowls, canals and ponds.

While water recreation provides hours of enjoyment and exercise for children and adults alike, water and recreation can be a deadly mix when an unsafe environment, inadequate supervision or improperly used safety gear is present. Drowning remains the second leading cause of injury-related death among children ages 1 to 14. Drowning can occur in a variety of circumstances – during water recreational activities (such as swimming and boating) or when a young child is left unsupervised for a short time in the bathtub or around the home with access to nearby pools and spas. Drowning, which can happen in as little as one inch of water, is usually quick and silent.

Research shows there is no one device or solution that can prevent all drownings. Instead, a multifaceted strategy, including active supervision by a designated adult, safe water environments, proper gear and education, is required to ensure safety in and around water.

The Grand Junction Fire Department makes the following recommendations concerning water safety and drowning prevention:

• Post the 9-1-1 number on the phone
• Know where your children are at all times
• Never allow children to be alone near a pool or any water source
• Have life-saving devices near the pool or water, such as a pole/hook,or flotation device
• If you leave the pool area, take the children with you
• Always have a “designated child watcher”
• Teach or have your children taught how to swim
• Never swim alone, or while under the influence of alcohol or medications
• Never swim when thunder or lightning is present
• Never swim or dive into unfamiliar or shallow bodies of water
• Never leave any bucket of water or other liquid unattended when small children are around
• When boating, wear a Coast Guard approved lifejacket

Water safety should focus on four main areas
of concern for parents

1. SUPERVISION – Designate a responsible adult to actively supervise kids around water.
2. ENVIRONMENT – Ensure safe swimming environments by installing multiple layers of protection around pools and equipping all water recreation sites with appropriate signage and emergency equipment.
3. GEAR – Make sure the right safety gear is always used.
4. EDUCATION – Teach children to swim and educate them about water safety.

Whether vacationing on a beach, staying at a hotel with a pool, visiting relatives or friends who own pools, taking a tubing trip down a river or boating on a lake… water safety must be practiced wherever water is present!