Even though we’re halfway through summer, it’s more important than ever to keep an eye on your children while they are at the pool or the lake. Unfortunately, every summer we see an uptick in drowning accidents, almost all of which are entirely preventable.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “From 2005-2014, there were an average of 3,536 fatal unintentional drownings (non-boating related) annually in the United States – about ten deaths per a day.” The CDC goes on to say, “About one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger.” That’s very unsettling, especially if you’re a parent who is concerned for your child’s safety around water.
So, what can you do to prevent a child from drowning? Read on to learn how to prevent a drowning accident:
- If you have small children, enroll them in swimming lessons.
- If you’re a good swimmer, you can teach your children how to swim very well.
- Always supervise children around water, especially when they are young. This includes buckets of water (infants and toddlers), wading pools, and bathtubs. It only takes a few inches of water for a small child to drown.
- Don’t leave children unsupervised while they swim in your pool. If you run into the house to take call or do the dishes, it may be long enough for a child to drown under your watch.
- If you have a backyard pool, fence it off with a four-sided isolation fence with self-closing gates.
- If your children are around a natural body of water, such as a river or lake, insist upon them wearing a life jacket.
- Don’t rely on lifeguards. Often, lifeguards are teenagers who simply may have too much on their plate to notice every single child in the pool. If your child is swimming at a pool with lifeguards, you can’t get too comfortable and stop watching them.
- When children are in your pool, supervise them closely and avoid engaging in distracting activities. For example, don’t read a book, take a nap while sunbathing, text on the phone, or drink alcohol while watching them swim. Many times, children have drowned when their parents took their eyes off them for a couple of minutes.
If you need a Maring Williams Law Office attorney to handle a drowning accident claim, call us at (701) 402-6644 to set up a free case evaluation with a member of our legal team.