Lots of families go swimming during the summer to find relief from the heat, especially since their air conditioners may not work, but one thing that a lot of people are not fortunate enough to have is a swimming pool in their backyard. Many people would be grateful just to be able to afford to go to the community pool, since most of these places require an entry fee, but if you have your own pool, you really do feel on top of the world. There are a lot of safety rules that you should follow if you are lucky enough to have your own pool, though, and we are here to tell you what they are.
Children are the victims of most pool-related accidents, so you need to make every attempt to make the pool area as childproof as possible. This means making sure that you factor in the cost of building a fence around the pool to keep not only your children, but other children that live in your neighborhood safe, as well. Unfortunately, you are liable if a child from the neighborhood falls into your pool and drowns. This is the last thing that anyone wants to happen, so building a high privacy fence around the pool and keeping the gate locked at all times is extremely important.
Another good thing to have in your home if you have small children is an item called the Safety Turtle. This is one of the best products that you can purchase for your home and it will give you a lot of security when it comes to keeping your little ones out of the pool. A wrist strap is put on the child that has a small turtle-shaped device on it and when that device is submerged under water, the base station that is hooked up inside your house makes a loud noise so that no matter where you are in the house, you know that the child has likely fallen into the pool.
Your children and any visitors to the home need to be taught that it is not a good idea to run around the pool. They can fall, hit their head, and drown much faster than you realize.
Any pool chemicals that you have should be stored in a safe place and locked up so children and pets cannot get into them. These items are poisonous and if ingested, could kill you.
Showing posts with label water injury. Show all posts
Showing posts with label water injury. Show all posts
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Being Safe Around The Water
No matter where you choose to take your family swimming during the summer, there are a few basic water safety rules that you need to follow. The last thing that you should do, though, is become so comfortable with your surroundings that you allow members of your family to break these rules.
If you are fortunate enough to have a pool in your own backyard, you should make sure that none of your family runs around the pool for any reason, since this can lead to serious injury or even death in some cases. The worst case scenario is a child falling, hitting their head on the side, and drowning at the bottom of the pool.
You can avoid accidents involving small children around the pool if you enclose it with a fence and keep the gate locked at all times. You should do this not only to keep your own children safe from getting in the pool without your knowledge, but also because other children in your neighborhood can wander into your yard and possibly drown, leaving you responsible. This is a horrible thing that could happen, but it does.
Set rules for your children according to their level of swimming experience. They should be let to swim only in depths of water that you are completely comfortable with and those who have just recently started swimming should not be allowed into water that is higher than chest level.
You should also never dive into water that you do not know the depth of. Test the depth of the water physically. No one can tell the depth of a body of water just by looking at it, especially if it is clouded by mud and silt.
If you are swimming in an area such as a river, ocean, or creek, then there is local wildlife that you will have to contend with. Know the wildlife of the area that you may encounter and be prepared to deal with the situation should someone in your group come into contact with it.
Going boating requires that you have on life jackets at all times in most, if not all states in the United States, so make sure that you have them and some extra floatation devices, just in case.
The most important thing that you can learn to help protect your family is CPR and first aid. Lifeguards at city pools are trained in these things, but if you are going swimming in an area that does not have one, this is something that can save someone’s life. Consider taking a class on both subjects.
If you are fortunate enough to have a pool in your own backyard, you should make sure that none of your family runs around the pool for any reason, since this can lead to serious injury or even death in some cases. The worst case scenario is a child falling, hitting their head on the side, and drowning at the bottom of the pool.
You can avoid accidents involving small children around the pool if you enclose it with a fence and keep the gate locked at all times. You should do this not only to keep your own children safe from getting in the pool without your knowledge, but also because other children in your neighborhood can wander into your yard and possibly drown, leaving you responsible. This is a horrible thing that could happen, but it does.
Set rules for your children according to their level of swimming experience. They should be let to swim only in depths of water that you are completely comfortable with and those who have just recently started swimming should not be allowed into water that is higher than chest level.
You should also never dive into water that you do not know the depth of. Test the depth of the water physically. No one can tell the depth of a body of water just by looking at it, especially if it is clouded by mud and silt.
If you are swimming in an area such as a river, ocean, or creek, then there is local wildlife that you will have to contend with. Know the wildlife of the area that you may encounter and be prepared to deal with the situation should someone in your group come into contact with it.
Going boating requires that you have on life jackets at all times in most, if not all states in the United States, so make sure that you have them and some extra floatation devices, just in case.
The most important thing that you can learn to help protect your family is CPR and first aid. Lifeguards at city pools are trained in these things, but if you are going swimming in an area that does not have one, this is something that can save someone’s life. Consider taking a class on both subjects.
A Few Ways To Stay Safe Around The Water
People have been going swimming to get away from the heat during the summer for thousands of years, but these days some of us have the luxury of a swimming pool in our backyard that is free from all the wildlife and hazards that swimming in a creek, river, or ocean could give us. Even though the danger of wildlife and disease are mostly done away with when you have this luxury, other dangers still present themselves simply because the water is there.
The most important thing when you have a swimming pool is to teach your entire family how to swim. Your baby can swim even before they can walk, since the water will support them and they are free to exercise their arms and legs as they please. Your baby has an inherited memory that reminds it how to swim, but by the time the baby is a year or a year and a half old, this memory is lost, so the sooner you introduce your baby to the water, the better. Start in the bath tub and work your way to the shallow end of the pool.
Even though your child is born basically knowing how to use their arms and legs to swim and you can teach them to use this skill before they’re even walking, you will still not want to let them outside near the pool without you there. To prevent this, you should invest in a product called Safety Turtle. It acts as a beacon of sorts that attaches to your child’s wrist via a strap and when it comes into contact with water, a base station located in the house emits an alarm to let you know he or she is in the pool.
Another thing that you can do to protect your children and others in the neighborhood is to build a fence around the entire pool and have the gate to it locked. This will help prevent other children in the neighborhood from getting into your pool and possibly drowning.
Teach your kids that running around the pool is not acceptable behavior and make sure that the older children and young adults in the home lead by example, since running around the pool can cause serious injury or even death. It is not very difficult to slip and fall, especially if the surface area around the pool is excessively slippery.
The most important thing when you have a swimming pool is to teach your entire family how to swim. Your baby can swim even before they can walk, since the water will support them and they are free to exercise their arms and legs as they please. Your baby has an inherited memory that reminds it how to swim, but by the time the baby is a year or a year and a half old, this memory is lost, so the sooner you introduce your baby to the water, the better. Start in the bath tub and work your way to the shallow end of the pool.
Even though your child is born basically knowing how to use their arms and legs to swim and you can teach them to use this skill before they’re even walking, you will still not want to let them outside near the pool without you there. To prevent this, you should invest in a product called Safety Turtle. It acts as a beacon of sorts that attaches to your child’s wrist via a strap and when it comes into contact with water, a base station located in the house emits an alarm to let you know he or she is in the pool.
Another thing that you can do to protect your children and others in the neighborhood is to build a fence around the entire pool and have the gate to it locked. This will help prevent other children in the neighborhood from getting into your pool and possibly drowning.
Teach your kids that running around the pool is not acceptable behavior and make sure that the older children and young adults in the home lead by example, since running around the pool can cause serious injury or even death. It is not very difficult to slip and fall, especially if the surface area around the pool is excessively slippery.
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