Water Safety Tips

• Cross the room for a towel (10 seconds), a child in the bathtub can become submerged.
  
• Answer the phone (2 minutes), that child can lose consciousness.
  
• Sign for a package at your front door (4 to 6 minutes), a child submerged in the bathtub or pool can sustain permanent brain damage.
  

While enjoying the beach or pool this summer, follow these important tips from www.safekids.org for a fun and safe day:

• Never leave children alone in or near water, even shallow wading pools. Children can drown in as little as 1 inch of water — and it can happen in a matter of seconds.
  
• Keep rescue equipment, a telephone and emergency numbers close by when you’re in the water.
  
• Make sure pools and spas are completely surrounded by isolation fencing, at least 5 feet high, and equipped with self-closing, self-latching gates.
  
• Enroll children in swimming lessons taught by qualified instructors when they are ready, usually after age 4. But do not assume your child is "drown-proof." Even though your child may have taken lessons and learned to swim, he or she still needs constant supervision.
  
• Children should always wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved personal floatation device on a boat, near open bodies of water, or when participating in water sports.
  
• Children ages 14 and under should never operate a personal watercraft.
  
• Adults and kids over age 13 should learn infant and child CPR. Also, adults who do not know how to swim should learn.
  
• Be aware of undercurrents and the changing nature of waves and undertows when at the ocean or lake.
  
• Do not let children dive into water unless an adult is present and knows that the depth of the water is greater than 9 feet.
  
• Never consume alcohol when operating a boat or other watercraft.
  

If you have questions, please ask your health care provider.