Children Under Age 5 Are at the Greatest Risk of Drowning with 2/3 of All Drowning Deaths Occurring Between May and August
This past weekend, a young man was reported missing at the Jersey shore. According to news sources, the young boy left his parents and at the time of this writing, a search operation is underway and he has been missing for over 48 hours.
All of us flock to the water when temperatures soar, and as parents, pool owners, and mature individuals with responsibility, we must strongly recognize that statistics indicate that 84% of all drowning deaths among children age 5 or under will occur at a home while 45% of all fatalities among children due to drowning or water-related injuries will occur at a public pool.
In almost 90% of all child drowning cases, there was a parent, caregiver, or adult supervisor who was supposed to be watching or supervising the child. There is nothing in life that quite comes close on the scale of tragedy as the loss of one of our precious children, and last year over 1,000 children age 0 to 19 drowned in situations that were mostly preventable.
As a practicing swimming drowning accident attorney, ex-lifeguard, and responsible pool owner, I know just how easy it is for a young child to get out of your sight for just a few minutes and recognize that a drowning can occur in less than a minute and can also occur in the shallowest of water. I have been part of human rescue chains and have made quite a few water rescues in my life with some very close and heart wrenching moments, and as a parent of three children who is also a pool owner, I am almost over-paranoid when it comes to pool and water safety. You can never be too strict when it comes to managing children near a water environment.
I am advising all of my readers to always watch the water, check the surroundings, be careful using floating toys and never confuse them with life jackets and only swim at guarded beaches. Don’t be distracted by cell phones or captivating conversation as the safety of children must always come first. Check pool security gates, fences, and entryways.
If you or a loved one has sustained a swimming or water-related accident, pick up the phone and call one of our swimming pool and drowning accident lawyers for a free, no obligation consultation.
