Festive season water safety

Drownings are listed as one of the foremost causes of unnatural death among children and sadly many of the drownings could have been prevented through basic water safety education.

Coastal drowning incidents mostly involve those aged 10 to 18 years, while inland the greatest number of incidents involves children between the ages of 2 and 8. For every child who dies from drowning, five are left with permanent brain damage as a result of the prolonged lack of oxygen which occurs during a near drowning.

Statistics reveal that:

60% of all drownings occur among children aged 1 to 4 years;
70% of all pool drownings occur in fully fenced pools;
90% of drownings occur while the child is under supervision; and
most drowning events are totally silent.

Because a small child can easily drown in only a few hundred millilitres of water, parents and childminders should be aware of the many water hazards in and around the home. Fish-ponds, water features, toilets, pets’ water bowls, boreholes and open drains are all potential threats.

Although teaching your child to swim is the most important safety measure, layering pool safety elements is as important as tending the security of your home.

Swimming pool safety:

A high-quality subsurface pool alarm will trigger a siren when your child enters the pool. The siren should be installed both indoors and around the pool area.

A pool fence that is approved by the SABS and is at least 1,5 metres high, should surround your pool. No climbing apparatus such as trees, jungle gyms or furniture should be near the pool fence. The gate should be lockable and could also be fitted with an alarm.

A properly fitted net should never sag below the pool’s surface under your child’s weight. Pool blankets or solid pool covers are hazards, as they often collect pools of water, or a child could suffocate under these.

Make sure that poolside rescue devices are within easy reach. These include rescue hooks that can be used by a non-swimmer in the event of a child falling into the pool, avoiding a double drowning tragedy of victim and would-be rescuer.

Children should never swim alone, and they should walk around the pool, rather than run, to prevent slipping. Pushing friends into the water or jumping on them might seem like fun, but these pranks can result in serious injuries.

Keep food and refreshments for after swimming — eating while swimming could result in choking.

Anyone responsible for looking after your children — including yourself — should learn to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Many of us head for big bodies of water for the holidays. The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) have issued a series of helpful tips for water safety over the summer holiday period.

Swim at beaches where and when lifeguards are on duty. Listen to their advice and talk to them about safety on the beach that you are visiting. They are the experts on that beach. If lifeguards are not on duty, do not swim.

Swim between the lifeguard’s flags. Teach children that if they swim between the lifeguard’s flags, the lifeguards will be watching them and can help if there is a problem. Lifeguards observe swimmers between the flags – wave an arm if you need help.

Don’t drink alcohol and then swim.

Don’t swim alone. Always swim with a buddy.

Adults who are supervising children in or near water must be able to swim. This is vital if it is at a water body that does not have lifeguards on duty. It is extremely dangerous to get into the water to rescue someone, so rather throw something that floats to the person in difficulty and call for help (112 from a cell phone and check for the nearest Sea Rescue station telephone number before you visit a beach – save the number).

Know how to survive rip currents. If you swim between the lifeguard flags, they will make sure that you are safe and well away from rip currents. If for some reason this is not possible, do not swim.

Watch children who are using floating objects, toys or tire tubes at the beach or on dams very carefully. Never use these if the wind may blow them away from the shallow water.

Do not be distracted by your cell phone or social media. While you are looking after children in or near water, you need to focus on them and nothing else. Adults who are supervising children should not be distracted or use their cell phone. It is not possible to concentrate on children in the water and be on your phone at the same time.

The NSRI introduced the Pink Buoy initiative in 2017 in response to frequent multiple drowning situations. The emergency flotation devices are placed on beaches around South Africa in a bid to prevent attempted drowning rescues from turning fatal.

The information contained in this article is of a general nature and intended for information purposes only.