Every Sunday, we will share a story of a non-fatal drowning, discuss where things went wrong, and give some pointers on how to prevent it from happening to the people you love. Thankfully, these stories have happy endings for those involved, but sadly, we lose too many people to drowning every year. We hope examining these real-life stories help put the dangers of water into perspective and help you introduce various principles of water safety to your family!
Today’s story involves a terrifying situation. Imagine- you are visiting a local swimming hole, having a great day swimming. You’re happy, carefree, and then suddenly, you’re stuck. Unable to pull yourself up out of the water, unable to see exactly what is going on due to the dark murkiness. It sounds like a perfect fictional story where a bright sunny day suddenly goes wrong. But it’s not fiction, and it could happen to you, just like it happened to a 10year old boy. Read this week’s article:
Any time you are swimming in a natural body of water, you must be aware of the unknown dangers. Unlike a pool, natural bodies of water do not have a nice smooth bottom surface or crystal-clear water you can see through. This means the danger of getting stuck in rocks, suddenly walking into an underwater drop-off, or getting entangled in debris is a constant red flag. To help prevent this circumstance, you should never jump into unfamiliar water, you should always swim in a group in case an emergency happens, and you should always be aware of the ever-changing environment that comes with natural bodies of water. Just because a swimming hole is safe one day does not guarantee it is safe the next. You should evaluate where you are swimming and what dangers are present before every swim.
Be aware of the dangers present beneath the surface, especially when swimming in natural bodies of water. Have fun, be safe, and always evaluate for red flags!