Water Safety
Water safety
Swimming, bathing and splashing can be lots of fun, but drowning is the second leading cause of predictable and preventable injuries in Canadian children.
Why are young children at an increased risk of drowning?
1. They can walk, but most cannot swim.
2. Their lungs are small and fill with water quickly.
3. They can drown in just 2.3 cm or 1 inch of water.
To prevent drowning:
- Keep your child in sight and arms reach at all times.
- Do not leave your child alone in or around water.
- If you have to leave the area, take your child with you.
- Make sure young children and weak swimmers wear a life jacket when in or around pools or open water.
- Enroll your child in swimming lessons.
- If you have a pool at home, install four sided fences with self-closing, self-locking gates.
For more information on water safety: around backyard pools, while swimming, boating and sailing, at bath time, and when using personal floatation devices, visit Parachute Canada: drowning prevention.