If you have a new baby and also are lucky enough to have a home swimming pool, it may not...
If you have a new baby and also are lucky enough to have a home swimming pool, it may not be safe, even if you think you're following safety rules. Sobering facts: The CPSC estimates that about 300 children under the age of 5 years drown each year in home swimming pools. CPSC also notes that an additional 2,000 children (under 5 years) are seen in the emergency room each year due to being submerged in home swimming pools. It gets worse: In studies done by CPSC it's been shown that...
- Most child victims "were being supervised by one or both parents when the swimming pool accident occurred."
- In California, Arizona and Florida, drowning was the leading cause of accidental death at home for children under the age of 5 years.
- 69% of children who became victims in swimming pool accidents were last seen in the house or on a patio, meaning, most victims were not expected to be anywhere near the pool, but were later found drowned or submerged.
- 65% of the accidents occurred in a pool owned by the child's immediate family, and most of the others occurred in pools owned by relatives or friends. Small children are not sneaking off to the neighbor's pool. These accidents happen with family for the most part.
- 75% of the children who drowned or who were submerged were between the ages of 1-3 years. Young boys between 1 and 3 years old are most likely to be drowning victims. Boys were also most likely to be victims of near-fatal submersion.
- 77% of children who die (or almost die) in swimming pool accidents are missing for less than 5 minutes before being found in a pool. Children can drown very fast.
- Small children, under 5 years, tend to drown silently. While splashing and yelling is what people may expect, a baby or toddler will usually drown without noise; no splashing, no screaming. This means we can't trust our ears to EVER save a child from drowning.