‘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 prmote drowning awareness. Speak to parents about removing toys and other temptations from the pool area. Encourage parents to learn about the 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.
Miami-Dade Cty, Florida, April 25 —
A 5 1/2– year-old autistic child was pronounced deceased 3 days after she was found unresponsive in the hotel swimming pool when she got out of the hotel room undetected. The incident occurred while the family was on vacation.
Clay County, Florida, April 26 —
A 5-year-old child was pronounced deceased after he was found unresponsive in the swimming pool while attending a pool party for his baseball team at a community center.
Chesapeake, Virginia, April 27 —
A 3-year-old was found unresponsive in a backyard pool.
Lake City, South Carolina, May 5 —
2-year-old Journee Davis died in her home’s aboveground swimming pool. She wandered away while family was saying goodbye to a guest at a get-together.
Horry County, South Carolina, May 10 —
A 4-year-old Matthew Halliday died two days after he was found in the Cape Landing community swimming pool.
Wichita, Kansas, May 7 —
7-year-old Zaniriusz Chambers, Jr. died a week after drowning in the Red Roof PLUS+ hotel swimming pool while there with adult relatives and other children.
Orange County, Florida, May 8 —
A 2 1/2– year-old child was pronounced deceased 5 days after she was found unresponsive in the jacuzzi area of the family's swimming pool.
