As the Fourth of July holiday approaches, families across the country are heading to cooler places to celebrate. Water destinations are great fun, but safety is a major concern as oftentimes there are no safety measures in place and no lifeguards to ensure they are enforced.
We came across this helpful article discussing how drowning doesn’t always look like drowning. This is a real eye-opener as most people envision it involving a lot of splashing, flailing arms, yelling, etc. In actuality, it may be hard to even realize that a person is struggling in the water. This real-life near-drowning video has been circulating the internet recently and just goes to show how quick it can happen, how difficult it can be to spot, and just how serious a lifeguard should take their job. We give a huge shout out to the lifeguard for taking her job seriously and being so alert!
One way to ensure kids are being watched vigilantly, is to share the responsibility with each of the guardians who are there to “watch” their kids as they swim. If swimming with a group of friends, pick an item such as a pool diving stick or even create a silly hat with a pair of eyes on it that the adult “on duty” has to wear. The idea is to make sure that someone is “on alert” at all times. When one is on duty they can’t be on cell phones and all attention must be on not only their own child(ren), but on all the kids in the swimming area. We think this is a great way to be smart this Fourth of July holiday.
With all that being said, make sure and enjoy your vacation, just be safe!
What are your plans for the Fourth of July?
