‘NOT ON MY WATCH’
Drowning injuries and fatalities are so commonplace that the stories could fill up whole newspapers.
The CDC estimates that about 10 people die from drowning in the U. S. every day.
Children ages 1 through 4 have the highest drowning rates and most of those drownings happen in home swimming pools.
Drowning events are real, tragic, frequently preventable, and much more than just statistics. There are measures that service technicians can take to promote drowning awareness.
Speak to parents about removing toys and other temptations from the pool area.
Encourage parents to learn about layers of protection: pool covers, gates and alarms.
Remind parents there is no substitution for total supervision around the pool area.
Service professionals are in peoples’ backyards every day, and in a unique position to point out danger areas, but may not do so unless the drowning problem is brought home to them.
To that end, the following is a description of just some of the drowning incidents that have recently occurred.
Scottsdale, Arizona, January 4 —
A 3-year-old girl was taken to the hospital after she was pulled from a home’s swimming pool. CPR was given to the girl and she was transported to the hospital awake and crying.
Durango, Colorado, January 17 —
A 5-year-old boy drowned at the Durango Hot Springs swimming pool. A staff member who is a trained EMS worker administered CPR until paramedics arrived.
EMS then took over, and the father accompanied the child in the ambulance to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Lake Tahoe, Nevada, January 21 —
25-year-old Charanverr Singh nearly died after attempting to rescue his struggling girlfriend at the Montbleu Resort Casino & Spa swimming pool. A staff member from the resort threw the life ring out the girlfriend, but Singh went under, where he stayed for 2 minutes and 29 seconds before he was blue and lifeless, with no pulse. The man was revived and discharged from the hospital the same day.
Phoenix, Arizona, January 23 —
A 3-year-old girl was found unconscious in a swimming pool. The girl was transported to a local hospital in critical condition.
