Summertime Safety
Reduce the risk of drowning accidents
Tips to Reduce the Risk of Drowning Accidents
With the warmer months of the year upon us, the time has arrived to focus attention on summertime safety and children. At the top of the list of protecting kids during the summer months are six key tips to reduce the risk of child drowning accidents:
- Always have an adult supervisor at a pool
- Comprehensively enclose a pool and deck
- Ensure drain covers are properly maintained and secure
- Learn CPR
- Teach children to swim
- Always have lifesaving gear and equipment on hand
These tips are applicable if you have a pool at your home, if you’re responsible for a pool, or if your own children will be participating in activities at or around a pool.
Always Have an Adult Supervisor at a Pool
While this may seem like the proverbial “no-brainer” (and it truly should be), make certain you always have adult supervision when a child or children are near, around, or in a pool. No matter that this may seem like a given, each and every year children are involved in fatal drowning accidents in part or fully because of a failure in appropriate adult supervision.
Proper adult supervision means more than merely being present poolside. An adult designated to supervise youngsters in a pool needs to keep his or her eyes trained on the child or children. Full concentration and complete attention must be on youngsters in a pool.
Additionally, bear in mind that an adult can only effectively and safely monitor a few children at a time. If a larger number of kids will be enjoying a pool, as is often the case, the number of adult supervisors must be increased accordingly.
Comprehensively Enclose a Pool and Deck
If you have a pool at your residence, you need to be certain it is comprehensively enclosed. This typically means a fence of at least six feet in height that a child cannot scale or climb. An appropriately secured pool has a locking gate. As a pool owner, you also need to be certain that access to the pool from inside the residence is secured as well.
Consider seriously adding an alarm system to the pool perimeter. Such a system should sound loudly, not only if the gate somehow is opened when no adult is around, but when motion is detected around the pool.
Ensure Drain Covers are Properly Maintained and Secure
With alarming, grim frequency children (and adults) are injured or killed each year as the result of injuries associated with pool drains. These tragic accidents occur when a child (or adult) gets an arm or leg trapped in a pool drain.
As part of reducing child drowning accident risks, you must make certain that all pool drains are fully secured. You need to confirm that they remain secure on a regular basis. There is something to be said for doing a drain inspection each day before a pool will be used.
Learn CPR
If you own a pool or are responsible for one, you should learn CPR. The reality is that if you are a parent, you should obtain CPR instructions for an array of reasons in addition to enhancing pool safety.
Always Have Lifesaving Gear and Equipment on Hand
Finally, if you own or are responsible for a pool, make certain that you have lifesaving gear and equipment on hand. Additionally, you need to regular inspect and test such gear and equipment to make sure it is functional and in good condition.
Teach Children to swim
If you have a child or children, you should teach them to swim (or have them taught to swim). Experts in regard to training youngsters to swim believe that age five is a good time to start. Children this age usually have the mental capacity to truly learn swimming techniques.
Having set age five as a starting point, there is evidence to suggest that teaching kids to swim at an even younger age is not necessarily a waste of time. Pre-kindergarten children might also be able to pick up some basic points that prove to be essential should they somehow end up in a water emergency, like falling into a pool.
Despite the most diligent efforts to protect children and others from drowning accidents or other types of aquatic accidents, these incidents do happen. If you a child or another loved one is injured or lost as the result of a drowning accident caused by someone else’s negligence, you best protect your vital legal interests by consulting with a skilled, experienced, and tenacious personal injury attorney. As a matter of practice, a personal injury lawyer typically charges no fee for an initial consultation and case evaluation.