Tips for Keeping Children Safe Around Water

Whether your kids are in the bathtub, taking a dip in the backyard pool or on a family trip at the beach, parents can play a major role in protecting the children they love from drowning. Drowning is the single-leading cause of death among children ages 1-4, and a top cause of death among teens. It is quick, and it is silent, but drownings are preventable. 

Parents and caregivers can follow these drowning prevention tips to keep kids safe in and around water.

• Never leave children alone, or in the care of other children, while in or near bathtubs, pools, spas, or open water.
• Empty wading pools and buckets when not in supervised use and turn them upside down so they do not collect water.
• Install fences around home pools.
• Teach children how to swim — every child is different so consider your child’s age, development and how often they are around water and enroll them in swim lessons when they are ready.
• An adult should be in the water, within arms’ reach, of any child who cannot swim independently.
• Assign a water watcher — an adult paying constant attention to children in water.
• Speak to teenage children about the risks of drowning.
• Know what to do in a drowning emergency — learning basic water rescue skills and CPR may help save a child’s life.