One of our top goals is to help the public understand important facts about pool safety. One of the many ways we do this is by researching the most recent news information, as this allows us to provide you with the detailed and accurate information you need to ensure you know how to create a safe swimming pool environment at your home. If you’re a parent, understanding the latest child drowning statistics will allow you to take the appropriate measures to prevent this type of tragedy from happening on your watch.

The information below is on the topic of child drowning prevention, including information on the importance of using pool safety devices that can save lives.

Common Risk Factors for Child Drownings

What are some of the more common risk factors that can increase a child’s chance of drowning? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the main factors that affect drowning risk are:

• lack of swimming ability,
• lack of barriers to prevent unsupervised water access,
• lack of close supervision while swimming,
• location,
• failure to wear life jackets,
• alcohol use, and
• seizure disorders

Because there are so many factors, it’s necessary for parents to address each and every one in order to ensure their children’s safety.

The Importance of Pool Safety at Home

Child drowning prevention starts at home. Especially homes that have small toddlers, as toddlers are most at risk when it comes to accidental drownings. This is why it’s so essential for parents to talk with their children about the importance of pool safety, especially when they have a pool at their own home. And it doesn’t matter whether the pool is a small above ground pool or a large inground pool, as learning about pool safety is something every child needs to be taught.

A shortlist of basic pool safety tips include:

• Never leave a child unattended when they are in a pool or even near a pool.
• Make sure all children who have access to a pool know how to swim.
• Install any necessary pool fences and/or pool alarms around a pool.
• Understand how to perform CPR, on both children and adults.

News Reports on Near Child Drownings

Below are some examples of near child drownings that have been included in recent child drowning news.

• Grant Brown was only 6 years old when he drowned at a day camp. While there was adult supervision, they were not watching as closely as they should have been watching. Grants body was found on the bottom of the pool by 2 other children attending the day camp, and his parents are taking action to ensure that this never happens to another child. *1
• A young girl was saved from drowning in an apartment when a young man who was passing by heard a small child crying. He wanted to make sure the small child was okay and when he saw her, she started pointing to the pool, where he saw a young girl drowning. He quickly jumped into the pool and pulled her out in time to save her life. *2
• Country music star Granger Smith and his wife Amber recently lost one of their children to drowning. Their 3-year-old son River accidentally drowned in their family backyard pool. The parents were not aware that River had made his way inside the pool area, and attempted CPR until he was taken to the hospital. He died 2 days later. *3
• A 15-month-old child drowned in a retention pond in a Greenacres neighborhood. Deputies were called when the parents learned their young child was missing. The boy’s body was found in 1 of the 2 retention ponds located near the home. He was taken to the hospital for treatment, where he died. *4

News Reports on Recent Child Drownings

Below are some examples of actual child drownings that have been included in recent child drowning news.

• Heather Barger’s 15 month old daughter Royal Dampier nearly drowned in their backyard pool. Even though Royal did not drown, she required intensive medical care to recover from almost drowning. While doctors don’t think Royal was going to make it, she slowly but surely recover from her near drowning. *5
• A 3 year old boy fell into a family pool and was pronounced dead by Henry County Hospital just a short time later. While his parents knew that he had gone outside, they did not consider the fact that he could potentially drown in the family’s pool. When they did find him, they called an ambulance to take him to the hospital, but by the time they got there, it was too late. *6
• An 11-year-old boy is in critical condition following a near drowning when his family booked a room at a Cleveland hotel. Other people near the pool area said the boy was laying by the pool, and seemed to be unresponsive. Police officers were called, and when they arrived, they performed CPR until the ambulance arrived on the scene and took him to the hospital. *7
• A 10-year-old girl was recently found near her family’s indoor swimming pool unconscious and not breathing. Her family performed CPR until the ambulance arrived, who took her to a local hospital to be treated for a near-drowning. Because her condition was unstable, she was transported to Primary Children’s Hospital for further treatment. The cause of her near-drowning is still not known. *8

Summary

It’s essential for all children to understand how to be safe when around swimming pools. You never know when tragedy can strike, making it necessary for you to install one or more pieces of pool safety equipment in your pool area, as this simple act helps save lives. The fact that many child drownings are silent makes it essential for you to take any and all necessary measures to ensure that no children who comes into contact with your pool is at risk of drowning.

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*1: Ellenbogen, Romy. “Her Baby Nearly Drowned One Month Ago and Is Still Fighting. It Took Only Two Minutes.” Tampa Bay Times, Aug. 2019, www.tampabay.com/news/clearwater/2019/08/24/her-baby-nearly-drowned-one-month-ago-and-is-still-fighting-it-took-only-two-minutes/.

*2: “Heroic Dallas ISD student rescues young child from drowning.” North Dallas Gazette, Dec. 2019, https://northdallasgazette.com/2019/12/05/heroic-dallas-isd-student-rescues-young-child-from-drowning/

*3: “Granger Smith, drowning tragedies can happen to anyone.” USA Today, 7 June 2019. https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/allthemoms/2019/06/07/granger-smiths-son-dies-drowning-what-parents-need-know/1378901001/

*4: Phillips, Doug. “Toddler found in pond is 3rd apparent child drowning in recent days.” Sun Sentinel, 6 Nov. 2019. https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/palm-beach/fl-ne-greenacres-toddler-drowning-20191106-c3r7sih4cngp7jiqwbbyamaqty-story.html

*5: Powers, Katie. “It Takes Just Seconds for a Child to Drown.” Bradenton, Bradenton Herald, 3 Apr. 2018, www.bradenton.com/news/local/health-care/article207781394.html.

*6: “Three-year-old boy drowns in Henry County pool.” USA Today, 30 Nov. 2019, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/local/2019/11/29/child-drowns-henry-county-pool/4333574002/.

*7: “11-year-old boy in critical condition following near drowning at Cleveland hotel.” 19 News, 16 Nov. 2019. https://www.cleveland19.com/2019/11/17/year-old-critical-condition-following-near-drowning-cleveland-hotel/

*8: Klekas, Mark. “10-year-old girl nearly drowns at indoor pool in Weber County, condition unstable”. KUTV News, 16 Nov. 2019. https://kutv.com/news/local/10-year-old-girl-nearly-drowns-at-indoor-pool-in-weber-county-condition-unstable