Summer is the time of year for swimming. Everyone knows this. However, Washington has one thing that should cause people to be more cautious: warm weather but cold waters. More than 3,700 Americans drowned in 2017, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with more than 700 of them under the age of 14.
In Washington during 2018, the drowning deaths rate per 100,000 was 1.1.
About one in five people who die from drowning are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency department care for nonfatal water injuries, the government health agency says.
Additionally, the CDC says drowning is a leading cause of injury death for young children ages 1 to 14.
One problem with drowning situations is that they don’t look like the dramatic scenes depicted in movies, and the process can happen incredibly quickly. Children can drown right in front of adults, and multiple people can drown in relatively shallow pools without knowing how to swim.
Washington has its own unique challenge: while the weather is warm, the water in the Puget Sound can stay very cold. It’s easy for swimmers jumping straight in to go into shock, so health officials say always check the water temperature, or choose to swim in a pool if possible.
Before people drown, they may be able to signal distress — but in many cases, they’re unable to call for help.
Here are five tips for recognizing drowning, as originally published in the Coast Guard’s On Scene magazine:
- In all but rare circumstances, people are psychologically unable to call for help. The respiratory system is designed for breathing, and speech is a secondary function: “Breathing must be fulfilled before speech occurs,” the article said.
- A drowning person’s mouth alternately sinks below the surface of the water and then reappears, but the mouth is never above the surface long enough to exhale, inhale and cry for help. A drowning person will exhale and inhale quickly before their mouths start to sink below the surface of the water again.
- Drowning people can’t flag down help. “Nature instinctively forces them to extend their arms laterally and press down on the water’s surface,” the article said. “Pressing down on the surface of the water permits drowning people to leverage their bodies so they can lift their mouths out of the water to breathe.”
- When they’re drowning, people lose control of their arms. They’re struggling to stay afloat in the water, and “cannot stop drowning and perform voluntary movements such as waving for help, moving toward a rescuer, or reaching out for a piece of rescue equipment,” the article said.
- While they’re drowning, people will remain upright in the water, and there’s no evidence of a supporting kick.
Here are six tips provided by PoolSafely.gov to help ensure that swimming pools stay safe:
- Never leave a child unattended in or near water. The public education campaign also recommends that parents and caregivers should remain alert even if there is a lifeguard on duty.
- Teach children how to swim. “Swimming is not only fun, it’s a lifesaving skill,” according to PoolSafety.gov.
- Teach children to stay away from drains. Children’s hair, limbs, jewelry or bathing suits can all get stuck in a drain or suction opening. Make sure to locate the drains before getting into the pool.
- Along the same lines, ensure all pools and spas you visit have compliant drain covers. Powerful suction from a pool or spa drain is enough even to trap an adult.
- Install proper barriers, covers and alarms on and around your pool and spa. “A fence of at least 4 feet in height should surround the pool or spa on all sides and should not be climbable for children. The water should only be accessible through a self-closing, self-latching gate,” says the PoolSafety website.
- Know how to perform CPR on children and adults. Learning CPR can help save a life.
Have fun out there, but SE Thurston Fire Authority wants to remind everyone to be safe.
Originally posted on patch.com.