Staying Safe Around The Water

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About ten people die from unintentional drowning every day.

That’s why it’s important to take extra precautions when heading out to the water.

Nearly every family has a routine when they are getting ready to go swimming.

But an Essentia official says you may want to add to what you are doing.

“We make sure they’re all sunscreened up, we grab towels, and we get refreshments, we bring water,” says Debbie Peterson of South Fargo.

Debbie Peterson takes her grandchildren to pools and lakes throughout the area.

Luckily, none of them have had any scary pool experiences. But one of their friends has.

“She had to have surgery on her leg because she slipped and fell and slammed it right on the metal part of the pool,” says Emma Wrage of South Fargo.

This is just one of several ways your fun day in the sun can go terribly wrong.

“Drowning or near drowning are probably the most common. But it could be things as simple as sunburns,” says Essentia Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Jessica Kuhn.

And she’s not just talking about lakes and pools. An area with even a foot of water needs to monitored.

“When you’re at home and you have even a kiddie pool, always be within an arm’s reach when kids are playing in the pool. Dump those pools out or drain them out when you’re finished using them and if they’re too large to do that, put barriers around,” Kuhn says.

Kuhn says to prevent eye irritation, swimmers should wear goggles every time they plan on going under water. And her safety tips aren’t just for kids.

“For everybody when you’re boating or swimming in lakes or rivers, you should have on flotation devices and for adults it would be important, especially when you’re supervising your children, but just in general, to be safe and not be drinking,” says Kuhn.

And she says there’s something kids and adults can do to avoid any swimming scares.

“Adults should have CPR training and it’s important to have your children experience with water so to enroll them in swimming lessons so that they’re comfortable around the water and they know how to swim,” Kuhn says.

Kuhn also says after you swim in chlorinated water, wash off with soap and water as soon as you can.

For more information, head to essentiahealth.org.