260 Percent Increase in Drowning Deaths in Ontario Children Under Five in 2010

Last summer, the community where I live was devastated by the drowning death of a four-year-old boy. 

That little boy was part of a significant and tragic trend that was noted by the Chief Coroner for Ontario in his annual report yesterday. There was a 260% increase in drowning deaths in children less than 5 years of age. (13 of the 89 deaths were in children less than 5 years of age.) 

The coroner also noted that

• Drowning is largely a male-related phenomenon. 76 of 89 (85%) deaths were male.
• 71 of 89 (80%) of the deaths occurred in persons aged less than 5 and between 15-64 years of age.
• 55 of 66 (83%) of the deaths related to swimming occurred when the air temperature was higher than 21 degrees Celsius.

The Canadian Red Cross is reminding parents that swimming lessons, while important, do not replace the need for parental supervision and other safety measures needed to prevent drowning. They recommend that

• Children playing near the water be directly supervised by an adult at all times;         
• Children under 5 and older children who are weak or non-swimmers wear a life jacket when around water;
• Pool owners, especially those with young children or grandchildren, install a 4-sided pool fence, which prevents access to the pool from the home;
• Parents be trained in first aid and CPR and have an emergency plan, especially if they live near the water or have a pool;
• All children take swimming lessons and these lessons should include water safety education as the ability to make wise choices around water may prevent an incident from occurring in the first place.