Summer is just around the corner, which means many families will be spending time around the pool and other waterways to cool off.
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Royal Life Saving Society – Australia is launching the Keep Watch campaign, urging parents and carers to supervise children at all times around water.
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A new report from the society reveals that 965 children up to 4 years old drowned in Australia between 1 July 1993 and 30 June 2018 (an average of 39 a year).
A lapse in adult supervision was the major risk factor in every single toddler drowning death, while most drownings were caused by accidental falls into water.
“It can only take a few moments for a child to slip away unnoticed, fall into the water and drown”, Justin Scarr, Royal Life Saving Society – Australia CEO, said.
“Drowning is often quick and silent. Distractions like browsing social media on your phone, attending to another child, or ducking inside to grab something can have tragic consequences if a toddler is left unattended by water.
“It’s important for parents and carers to take extra safety precautions. Always Keep Watch of children around water.”
More then half (52%) of all the drowning deaths studied among young children in Australia happened in swimming pools.
Faulty or propped open gates are the primary risk factors in home pool drowning deaths of young children.
Preventing accidental drowning requires multiple layers of protection.
“Active supervision is the best protection against child drowning,” Mr Scarr said, “but kids can be quick and hard to keep up with, so it’s vital to fence pools and spas to prevent children gaining access.
“Regularly check that your fence and gate are in working order, and never prop the gate open.”
Pool fencing legislation – including swimming pool registers and inspection regimes – and child drowning prevention campaigns have saved more than 550 lives over the past 20 years.
Royal Life Saving research shows the five-year average child drowning rate reduced from 4.35 per 100,000 population between 1993/94 and 1997/98 to 1.14 per 100,000 population in 2017/18.
“This is substantial progress, and many lives have been saved, but we won’t stop campaigning until it is zero,” said Mr Scarr.
“Such reductions have been possible due to a concerted effort in government policy and enforcement, public awareness and education programs such as Keep Watch, advocacy, and research.”
The research report has also revealed that for every fatal drowning, an estimated 7.6 non-fatal drowning incidents resulted in hospitalization.
Nearly 7400 children suffered a non-fatal drowning over the last 25 years, many left permanently disabled.
“These figures are horrifying,” Mr Scarr said. “While the rate of unintentional fatal drowning among children under five declined by 67%, it is still unacceptably high.
“If the rate of drowning we had 20 years ago continued today, there would have been 70 deaths – more than four times the 18 young lives lost last year.”
Royal Life Saving recommends the following Keep Watch safety tips to keep your child safe from drowning:
1. Actively supervise children around water
2. Restrict Access
3. Teach water awareness
4. Learn how to resuscitate
For further facts and information, visit KEEPWATCH.COM.AU.