Water safety alert
Children’s safety advocacy organisation, ChildSafe, is calling on parents and care-givers to be the adult this season, and to prioritise the safety of children under their care
THE festive holidays are here and people across the country will be planning long road trips to visit friends and family and relaxation at the beach or around the pool.
Children’s safety advocacy organisation, ChildSafe, is calling on parents and care-givers to be the adult this season, and to prioritise the safety of children under their care.
Executive Director Yolande Baker, says adults need to be especially vigilant when driving or near water.
‘Drowning can happen so quickly, even in circumstances where the most observant adults are present.
‘It is a silent killer. A child can slip under the water without a splash and in seconds, before anyone realises what has happened, it’s too late,’ said Baker.
According to a study by Dr Colleen Saunders (research manager in University of Cape Town’s Division of Emergency Medicine) and others, it was found that drowning was the leading cause of death of children and young people worldwide.
Most (78%) drownings mainly happen in large bodies of open water, such as the sea or in dams, with many incidents happening over the summer time (42%) and on public holidays (8%).
Poor supervision, risky behaviour in adults and external environmental factors, such as unpredictable sea currents, unsupervised swimming pools and open buckets were primarily responsible for the deaths.
‘It’s human nature to think, ‘It won’t happen to me’, but drownings often occur because adults do not consider the true consequences of their actions.’
Water safety
At this time of the year, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) once again urge the public to adopt a safety conscious mindset around coastal and inland waters.
Their number one rule for a safe experience is to choose a beach that has lifeguards on duty and to swim between their flags as one does not need to worry about rip currents, or suddenly getting out of depth and putting an arm in the air and waving for help will get a rapid response from the lifeguards on duty.
Here are some safety tips to bear in mind this summer:
•Swim at beaches where and when lifeguards are on duty
•Swim between the lifeguards’ flags
•Don’t drink alcohol and then swim
•Don’t swim alone. Always swim with a buddy
•Adult supervision and barriers to water are vital
•Know how to survive rip currents
•Don’t attempt a rescue yourself but rather call a lifeguard or the NSRI by dialling 112 from your cell phone for help.
If you see someone in difficulty call a lifeguard at once or dial the nearest Sea Rescue station from your cell phone
•Do not be distracted by your cell phone or social media while you are looking after children in or near water as you need to focus on them and nothing else
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