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Take Care this Summer for Safety and Fun: Waterworks
Your American Red Cross encourages you to make the water work for you this summer by keeping yourself and your family protected when swimming. Different types of water may require separate skills for swimmers. By understanding the environment of the water, from oceans to lakes to pools, families can do a great deal to keep themselves safe.
TAKE CARE to prevent swimming accidents by learning to swim. The American Red Cross has swimming courses for people of any age and swimming. Here are some other ways to help ensure safe swimming in all types of water this summer:
Ocean Safety
- Stay within the designated swimming area, ideally within the visibility of a lifeguard.
- Never swim alone.
- Check the surf conditions before you enter the water. Check to see if a warning flag is up or check with a lifeguard for water conditions, beach conditions, or any potential hazards.
- Don't try to swim against a current if caught in one. Swim gradually out of the current by swimming across it.
- Make sure you always have enough energy to swim back to shore.
Lake and River Safety
- Select a supervised area. A trained lifeguard who can help in an emergency is the best safety factor. Even good swimmers can have an unexpected medical emergency in the water. Never swim alone.
- Select an area that has good water quality and safe natural conditions. Murky water, hidden underwater objects, unexpected drop-offs, and aquatic plant life are hazards. Water pollution can cause health problems for swimmers. Strong tides, big waves, and currents can turn an event that began as fun into a tragedy.
- Make sure the water is deep enough before entering head-first. Too many swimmers are seriously injured every year by entering head-first into water that is too shallow. A feet-first entry is much safer than diving.
- Be sure rafts and docks are in good condition. A well-run open-water facility maintains its rafts and docks in good condition, with no loose boards or exposed nails. Never swim under a raft or dock. Always look before jumping off a dock or raft to be sure no one is in the way.
Pool Safety
- Enclose the pool completely with a self-locking, self-closing fence with vertical bars. Openings in the fence should be no more than four inches wide. The house should not be included as a part of the barrier.
- Never leave furniture near the fence that would enable a child to climb over the fence.
- Always keep basic lifesaving equipment by the pool and know how to use it. Pole, rope, and personal flotation devices (PFDs) are recommended. Don't rely on substitutes. The use of flotation devices and inflatable toys cannot replace parental supervision. Such devices could suddenly shift position, lose air, or slip out from underneath, leaving the child in a dangerous situation.
- Keep toys away from the pool when it is not in use. Toys can attract young children into the pool.
- Pool covers should always be completely removed prior to pool use.
- If a child is missing, check the pool first. Go to the edge of the pool and scan the entire pool, bottom, and surface, as well as the surrounding pool area.
- Post CPR instructions and 9-1-1 or your local emergency number in the pool area.
Swimming Safety for Children
- Never leave a child unobserved around water. Adult eyes must be on the child at all times. Watch children around any water environment (pool, stream, lake, tub, toilet, bucket of water), no matter what skills your child has acquired and no matter how shallow the water.
- Keep your cell phone with you. If you don't have one, install a phone by the pool or keep a cordless phone nearby so that you can call 9-1-1 in an emergency. At a swimming facility, locate the nearest pay phone and keep change with you.
- Learn American Red Cross Infant/Child CPR and insist that babysitters, grandparents, and others who care for your child know CPR.
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