Safety rules for swimming pools are an incredibly important part of your summer life. Ensure that your children know about water safety and how to protect themselves and their friends. Knowing how to implement child pool safety tips into the homeowner’s lifestyle is critical.
Seventy-six percent of all drowning deaths in the US each year involved children younger than five years old. And according to the Center for Disease Control, “for every child in the United States who drowns, five other children receive emergency room care for injuries.”
5 Crucial Child Pool Safety Tips
1. Active Adult Supervision
Always have adult supervision with children in your family, no matter how sure you are of their abilities. It can take seconds to drown, and your children’s life will be at risk even with adequate supervision from parents or lifeguards. With toddlers and babies, touch supervision is preferred in which a hand is always on the small child in case they dunk under the water. Babies and toddlers can swallow large amounts of water quickly, so it is best to avoid dunking them under water. Seventy-seven percent of children involved in a home or residential drowning were missing no more than five minutes before they were found in the pool. Don’t take the risk.
2. Swim with a Buddy
One of the most important safety rules to be followed in swimming pools is that your kids should always know they must swim with a buddy. With two kids playing together, a dire situation can get quicker attention or be avoided altogether. Children, regardless of age, should always have a swimming buddy to keep both of them safer.
3. Isolation Fencing
Isolation fencing is fencing installed around your poor to ensure that kids – yours or otherwise- cannot access your pool without you. Isolation fencing is required in several states for residential homes with pools, so be sure to check your local state laws to cover any isolation laws in effect. Water safety rules are incredibly important, but ensuring only those who have permission can access your pool can save you pain and any legal fault. A completely four-sided fenced-in pool reduces the risk of drowning by 80 percent compared to pools that are only secure on three sides.
4. Toys are not Life Jackets
As adorable as the unicorn innertubes and various water wings are, they are not designed to keep your child’s head above water in the event they slip beneath the surface. A life jacket is the best piece of swimming safety equipment to ensure your children will be safe in the case of a water accident. A life jacket fits properly if it cannot be pulled off after being fastened, and for children under 5, a flotation collar around the neck will ensure they can breathe if they fall off a boat or accidentally fall into a pool on their own.
5. Teach Children to Swim as Soon as Possible
Pool safety tips for toddlers extend to teaching them how to swim as quickly as possible. Teaching a toddler how to float on their back in an emergency or accident can save the child’s life if they happen to make it somewhere they are unsupervised.
6. Learn CPR
Any adults and children 13 years and older should learn infant and standard CPR just in case there is a situation where those skills are needed. CPR should be started immediately, but before starting, someone should be directed to call 911. Studies show that the quicker CPR is started on an individual, the better chance they have of surviving a near-drowning accident.
Our staff at Skovish Pools & Spas are deeply committed to and concerned about the safety of all children. We hope that our Important Child Pool Safety Tips help you whether you are a pool owner or not.
Contact Skovish Pools today for more information about our complete line of products, new pool construction, remodeling, hot tubs, outdoor living amenities and more. We have 2 locations, one in Luzerne, PA and the other in Shickshinny, PA. Stop in or give us a call. We service these areas and well beyond.
