Drowning Prevention Tips

The National Swimming Pool Safety Committee offers parents and pool/spa owners the following tips to help prevent child drownings and near-drownings.

Supervision

• Never take your eyes off a child when he or she is in or near any body of water, even for a second.
• Don’t rely solely on barriers, such as fences or walls. There is no substitute for constant supervision.
• Keep toys, tricycles, and other children’s playthings out of the water and away from the pool or spa.
• Don’t consider your children to be “drown-proof’ because you enrolled them in swimming or “water-proofing” classes.
• Don’t rely on inflatable devices to keep your child afloat. These are not substitutes for adult supervision

Barriers

• Make sure your pool or spa has a fence, wall, or safety cover that guards against unsupervised access, particularly by young children.
• Make sure doors leading to the pool or spa area are self-closing and self-latching, or are equipped with exit alarms, and are never propped open. Gates should have self-closing, self-latching mechanisms. Latches should be out of reach of young children and kept in proper working order.
• Make sure the safety cover is always closed when the pool or spa is not in use.
• Always drain standing (surface) water from the pool cover. Remember that even a few inches of water can be hazardous, especially to young children.

Emergency Procedures

• Learn how to administer lifesaving techniques to children, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
• Install a phone, or keep a cordless phone, in the pool or spa area.

Post the emergency medical services phone number (i.e. 911) in an easy-to-see place near the pool or spa, and make sure that everyone learns the number(s).