WATER SAFETY EDUCATION:
The U.S. Water Rescue Dive Team’s mission is to reduce the number of water-related incidents and deaths by providing water safety and awareness education. We fulfill this mission by providing water safety classes that are geared to meet participants’ level of interest, whether they are teaching children at swimming pools and lakes or talking around the table at civic groups’ meetings.
While fun and educational, these classes are meant to be life-saving. During 2005, the most recent year for which statistics are available, nearly one-third of all deaths of children age 14 and younger were from drowning, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although drowning rates have slowly declined, fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years, the CDC reports.
Adults are also at risk of unintentional drowning. These tragedies occurred at an average rate of 10 a day during 2005 when the CDC reported 3,582 fatal, unintentional drowning in the United States. Another 710 people died from drowning and other causes in boating-related incidents, according to the CDC. During that year, men were four times more likely than women to die from unintentional drowning.
Victims who are rescued and survive often suffer long-term disabilities including memory problems, learning disabilities and permanent loss of basic functioning as they remain in vegetative states.
U.S. Water Rescue Dive Team members work each year with children in the YMCA water safety class, volunteer at child safety fairs and are available to give presentations in classrooms, for organizations and small groups. For more information, call the team at (406) 591-4649 or send an e-mail from the contact us page.
Water Safety Tips
General Water Safety Rules
- Learn To Swim
- Never Swim Alone
- Swim Only in Safe Areas, Never Swim in a Ditch or River
- Never Chew Gum or Eat While Swimming
- Supervise Children and Weak Swimmers at All Times
- Always Wear a Personal Flotation Device/Life Jacket When Boating or Near Moving Water
- RESPECT THE WATER
Basic Rescue Guidelines
- Reach- hold on to something stable and reach with your other hand to the person in the water
- Throw- if you cannot reach with your hand, toss things that float for the person to hold onto
- Row- if in a boat use oars to move the boat close to the person in the water
- Don’t Go- do not go into the water unless professionally trained and certified and have the necessary equipment to do so
Boating Guidelines
- Know your boat
- Always wear a Personal Flotation Device/Life Jacket
- Don’t stand while boat is moving
- Make sure there is an experienced adult operating the boat
- Don’t get on the boat if the operator has been drinking alcohol
- Check the weather prior to departing
- Carry a cell phone in a waterproof container (can be as simple as placing phone in a heavy duty zip lock bag and using duct tape to seal it).
- Let someone know where you are going and when you will return, and stick to that plan
- If floating a river, use a professional guide and raft
River Dangers
- A river is moving faster than it appears, strong currents and undertows can make it impossible to swim effectively, even in shallow water
- A river can have many hidden dangers beneath the surface that can trap or severely injure you. Some of these dangers include: cars, glass, trees, debris, sharp metal objects, barb wire, etc.
- Hypothermia: water dissipates heat away from the body 20 times faster than air, even in the summer time, extended exposure to the water can be dangerous.
- If caught in a current, float on your back traveling downstream feet first, angle your body towards shore (45 degree angle)
- Video Moving Water, Adventure or Danger? http://www.weather.gov/os/water/multimedia/Moving%20Water%20PSA.mov
We all need air to breath and water can easily prevent us from doing so, all it takes is enough water to cover our mouth and nose!
