Fire Department Trains, Warns Families of Drowning Dangers in Texas

June 13--With an average of two child drowning deaths in Midland each summer, officials are urging families to take proper precautions at the pool.

Drowning is the top cause of accidental deaths for young children nationwide, according to the city. And the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has reported more than 20 drowning deaths statewide this year.

A training session held Thursday gave local firefighter-paramedics the chance to brush up their CPR skills. But Midland Fire Department Capt. Aaron Cox said drowning deaths are 100 percent preventable if swimmers are trained, pools have the right enclosures and parents provide proper supervision.

"It's not just in the pool," said Cox, warning parents to closely watch top-heavy toddlers around bathtubs, toilets and buckets of water. "Once they are in there, they can't get out."

If kids do go under, he said secondary drowning can occur -- causing delayed drowning symptoms that can lead to death.

"Anyone that has any type of drowning episode should be evaluated by a medical professional and observed for eight hours," he said.

Children under the age of 5, teenage boys and young men have a highest risk for drowning, with males making up 80 percent of deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cox warned swimmers to avoid high-risk behaviors and alcohol -- the effects of which are heightened by sun exposure and heat. He also asked Midlanders to be prepared for summer swimming troubles by becoming certified CPR providers.

"That's the biggest thing anybody could do for their family or community," Cox said.

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Drowning prevention:

-- Supervise children in bathtubs and pools (especially younger than 15 months old when children cannot get up on their own)

-- Eliminate buckets of water in the house or yard

-- Build barriers such as self-closing fences and latch gates around pools

-- Drain covers pools and hot tubs to prevent entrapment

-- Have a buddy system

-- Train family members in CPR

-- Teach children to swim contact local YMCA or Fitness Club

-- Use flotation devices

-- Avoid alcohol

-- Avoid high-risk behaviors

-- Do not dive after hyperventilation

-- Some victims will try to breathe instead of yell for help

-- Some victims will wade in the water trying to swim instead of waving hands in the air for help

Drowning types

-- Dry: When water or foreign bodies are inhaled.

-- Wet: When water enters the lungs.

-- Delayed or secondary: When water enters the lungs but does not cause immediate death.

CPR training

American Red Cross

Online: www.redcross.org/take-a-class

Call: 563-2267

American Heart Association

www.heart.org

Call: 520-7041

Source: Midland Fire Department

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