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As the summer season kicks off, more and more people are preparing for the warm weather and swimsuit season. But preparations should include educating oneself in water safety to prevent injury and unintentional drowning.
General safety tips
- Learn to swim
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Learn CPR - The United Fire Authority offers classes for CPR. Register online at www.unitedfire.org
- Mind weather conditions, as they may cause dangerous changes to your water activities.
- Always have an able bodied, responsible adult around small children while playing in or around water.
- If possible, swim where there will be lifeguards.
- Avoid drinking alcohol before and while participating in water activities or while supervising children.
Around a Personal Pool
- Install a four-sided fence around your personal swimming pool
- Clear the pool area of any pool toys, or any objects that can attract children to play around an unsupervised pool, or cause someone to trip and fall into a pool
Around a Natural Water Setting
- Use U.S. Coast Guard approved life jackets.
- Watch for dangerous waves and signs of rip currents.
We didn't have to look far to find people doing extreme water activities: home videos of daring stunts are all over YouTube. Janelle Hanson, who works at KSL News, is the "star" in one of them.
"I tend to make some stupid decisions when I'm in large groups and on trips," Hanson said. "This happens to be one of those.
A couple of summers ago, Hanson was badly injured at Lake Powell after being shot into the air 30 feet and awkwardly crashing into the water below.
"I had bruising from the entire left side of my body, down to my ankles," Hanson said.
Another apparent favorite activity on Utah's lakes: cliff jumping. The danger here lies in perception. While you might think you can see that the water is deep enough to dive into, unknown waters can be deceiving.
When jumping from 20 feet, the human body can reach a speed of 25 miles per hour — which can cause spinal compression, concussions and broken bones when you hit the water. Not to mention, the uncertainty of a shallow bottom, logs, or rocks, which could break your fall.
But it's not just extreme activities that can lead to injury. You can get hurt just about anywhere.
According to the CDC, between 2005 and 2009 there were more than 3,500 drowning-related deaths each year, none of which were related to boating incidents. So who is at risk?
- Children, specifically infants and toddlers, have the highest risk of drowning. Mos of these deaths occur in home swimming pools. In the cases of child mortality, drowning is second only to vehicle crashes.
- Men are also at greater risk of drowning. The CDC says ego gets in the way of 80 percent men's ability to swim properly, as they overestimate their skill.
- Minorities have a high risk of drowning as well. Due to statistical disinterest, lack of resources and higher bone density than other ethnicities, African Americans are more at risk of drowning.
The CDC recommends everyone take swimming lessons or have the appropriate flotation gear while swimming or participating in any type of water activities.
More tips on preventing unsafe water activity can be found at www.cdc.gov/HomeandRecreationalSafety/Water-Safety/waterinjuries-factsheet.html.
