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Preventing Drownings

Wednesday, 23 July 2014 at 05:55

The Lifesaving Society is reminding everyone to ensure they know how to swim.

TILLSONBURG - It only takes only a second for the unthinkable to happen.

It's Drowning Prevention Week and the Lifesaving Society is warning locals that over the next four weeks is when the greatest number of drownings happen in Ontario.

Area Manager Janet McCurdy says their message is simple.

"Every child needs to be a swimmer or have swimming lessons. Swimming is a life skill that can take your life and we want every child a swimmer."

McCurdy says adults should also know how to swim and says local aquatic centres offer adult swimming lessons.

She says 66 percent of the 47 people who have drowned already this year in Ontario were either in boats or were close to water and fell in.

"Only ten percent of drownings are in pools, 48 percent are in lakes, 22 percent are in rivers so right there is almost 70 in open water."

Public Education Director Barbara Byers says the shock of falling into water when the water is cold can cause a person to gasp and inhale
water and unless they are a strong swimmer and able to survive that experience, drowning can occur very quickly.

"In Canada, drowning is the number one cause of unintentional injury death among children 1-4 years of age and the second leading cause of preventable death for children under ten so that's pretty serious right there, those two things" says McCurdy.

The Lifesaving Society reminds parents to put lifejackets on toddlers and never leave children alone near water. They says keep them in sight
and within arms’ reach.

The week runs until Sunday, July 27.

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