How many of you have been personally affected by a drowning incident? Can you recall the day when the sound of sirens alarmed the community of a nearby drowning? How often does this happen and what are the drowning statistics of a given year? What can be done to prevent these drownings?
A recent CDC Report gives us a better idea of the risks of drowning and the statistics. In the year of 2001, approximately 3,300 persons died from unintentional drowning in recreational water settings, in the United States alone.
Results from analyzed data (2005-2009) indicated that each year an average of 3,880 persons were victims of fatal drowning. It is estimated that 5,789 persons were treated in the U.S. for nonfatal drowning.
Children aged 4 years and under accounted for 52.8% of the ED visits, and children aged 5–14 years accounted for 17.5%. Males accounted for 60.2% of nonfatal drowning patients, and 50.2% of the ED patients required hospitalization or transfer for further care. In addition, of nonfatal drowning injuries among those aged 15 years and over, 21.8% were associated with alcohol use.
Drowning is a leading cause of unintentional injury death worldwide, and the highest rates are among children. Swimming pools are the main cause for the majority of these drownings.
The key to prevention is adult supervision. Always be with your child near any body of water. If a child is not a good swimmer, make sure to use toddler life jackets
Even with swimming flotation devices
Drowning Prevention Tips Around Swimming Pools
Source: SafeKids.org
And as for the adults into swimming and boating, always use caution and wear life jackets
