May is National Water Safety Month, a time to remind families that drowning is preventable, yet it remains one of the leading causes of death for young children and people under 30.
Drowning rarely looks the way it does in the movies. Most people expect splashing or yelling, but drowning is often silent and can happen in less than a minute, even in just a few inches of water.
Bystanders are often the first line of defense. Research shows drowning victims are most often rescued by people nearby, not trained professionals, simply because they are closest to the incident. More than 60% of bystander rescues happen before help arrives.
“Everyone near water plays a role in keeping people safe,” said Wendy Vara, of the American Red Cross New Jersey Region. “Whether it’s a child, a friend or a stranger, you may be the only person in a position to recognize distress and respond.”
The American Red Cross urges families to stay actively engaged around water. Don’t just swim – watch. Close, constant supervision can make the difference between life and death.
Following are tips for prevention:
- – No one should ever swim alone, wheather adults or teens. Never leave a young child unattended near water, and do not trust a child’s life to another child.
- – Always designate a “water watcher” who will keep a close eye and constant attention on children and weaker swimmers in, on and around water.
- – Have young children or inexperienced swimmers wear properly fitted U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets around water, but do not rely on life jackets alone.
- – In the event of an emergency, reach or throw an object to the person in trouble and tell them to grab on. Don’t go in; you could be in danger of drowning yourself.
The Red Cross recently revamped its Longfellow’s WHALE Tales Water Safety for Children program and has now added the program in Spanish, completely translated and localized. The no-cost program helps children from all backgrounds, in kindergarten through fifth grade, learn vital water safety behaviors without having to be in or near the water.
Educators, swim instructors, parents, caregivers and others can teach critical water safety lessons to children before the swim season kicks off and throughout the summer. WHALE Tales are short, engaging and age-appropriate lessons that cover important water-safety topics in different environments such as pools, waterparks, oceans, lakes and rivers.
The free downloadable resources include lesson plans, course presentations and engaging materials such as videos and activity sheets and can be accessed at redcross.org. The Red Cross Swim app can help children and adults learn with kid-friendly video and activities on mobile devices. Do your part. Be “water smart.”
The Red Cross Aquatics Centennial Campaign, launched in 2014 to recognize 100 years of Red Cross leadership in swimming and water safety, is active in more than 100 communities across the country. The program works to reduce drowning rates in locations where numbers are above the national average.
To date, the campaign has delivered nearly 159,000 sets of swim lessons and certified 6,560 junior lifeguards, lifeguards and instructors. It has also armed nearly 24,000 parents and caregivers with water safety knowledge and/or CPR skills.
Go to redcross.org/watersafety for swim program information and a variety of resources.
