National Water Safety Month: How to keep kids safe
Salisbury, Md. – Water safety is important for everyone but especially for young children. According to the Center for Disease Control, drowning is the leading cause of death for kids ages one through four and the second-leading cause of death for children ages five through 14.
“Make sure that when you are at the pool or at the shoreline, you are always keeping an eye on your children,” Bear-Glasgow Family YMCA Aquatics Director Alex Rybin said. “Drowning happens very quickly and is often silent. It’s not like what you’ll see in the movies or on, your TV at home. Drowning is quick, it’s sudden, and it can impact anybody. Even the strongest of swimmers can find themselves struggling.”
Rybin said children who are strong swimmers can still get tired or, if they are in moving water like in the ocean or by a water slide, the current can catch them unaware.
Deputy Director and Paramedic Administrator of the Delaware Office of Emergency Medical Services Donna Doyle is also Secretary of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. In an email to WMDT, she said guidance from the USCG to prevent drowning includes:
- Supervision is essential: An adult should always be within arm’s length of a child in or near water, even when a lifeguard is present. Drowning can happen in seconds and is often silent
- Swimming lessons: Enroll children in swimming lessons to improve water safety skills, but lessons do not eliminate the need for close supervision
- Pool safety:
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- Enclose all home pools with a four‑sided fence at least 4 feet high with a self‑closing, self‑latching gate
- Remove toys or “floaties” from pools when not in use — they do not prevent drowning and can slip off easily
- Never leave children unattended near water, including bathtubs, buckets, or pails
Boating safety for children, she said also includes the following:
- Federal law: Children under 13 must wear a U.S. Coast Guard‑approved life jacket whenever a recreational boat is underway, drifting, or floating free
- Fit matters: The life jacket must be the correct size for the child’s weight and chest, and in good condition
- Availability: Every recreational vessel must carry at least one wearable life jacket for each person on board, plus throwable devices if the boat is 16 feet or longer
- Adults should also wear life jackets when boating to model safe behavior and be prepared in emergencies
Doyle said parents should choose life jackets that are USCG-approved and that there are community life jacket loaner stations at boat ramps, beaches and public facilities.
YMCAs throughout the country offer several different swimming programs to teach kids how to swim.
“Living on the Eastern Shore, teaching kids to be safe in and near the water is not a luxury; it is a necessity,” said Emily Glover at the Richard A. Henson Family YMCA in Salisbury, Md said in an email statement to WMDT. “Our programs allow children (and adults!) to learn essential water safety skills.”
The USCG stresses that swimming lessons don’t replace the need for supervision of kids, but they are still essential. And the YMCA offers swimming lessons for all.
“We are able to provide programming to ages six months all the way through adulthood,” Rybin said. “Some of our swimmers here are in their 70s learning how to swim.”
Rybin said the YMCA also offers financial assistance for their swimming programs. To learn more, reach out to your local Y.
