Protect your family with these pool safety tips

Supervision is key word when it comes to pool safety. But it's not the only line of defense against a swimmer being hurt in the pool. Encourage your neighbors, family, friends and baby-sitters to follow these swimming and pool safety tips.

Keep the pool off-limits unless adults are available to supervise. Be sure to include:

• High locks on the access doors to the pool area.
• Alarms on the access doors.
• A locked fence separating the pool from your home and other yards.
• Water-survival training for children as soon as they are capable of crawling or walking to the pool.

Be sure to follow these pool safety tips, too:

• Do not allow children to swim without supervision.
• Do not place anything near the fence that can be used to climb over the fence.
• Make sure the house doors do not open directly into the pool area. There should be a second self-locking gate installed prior to entering the direct pool area.
• Store chemicals in a hard-to-reach area so they cannot be accessed or knocked over by children.

Pool safety equipment recommendations

• Non-climbable, self-locking fence that completely encloses the pool
• Gates should have a childproof locking mechanism
• Door alarms on all doors reachable by small children
• Security cameras
• Pool safety covers that do not retain water on the top side
• Rescue equipment in the pool area
• Secure drain covers and automatic drain suction shut-off devices
• Nonskid surfaces on diving boards and immediate area surrounding

Swimming safety facts

• Children ages 1 to 4 have the highest drowning rates. In 2009, among children who died from an unintentional injury, more than 30% died from drowning.¹
• Drowning in private pools is also the 2nd leading cause of death in teenagers.
• For every drowning, there are 11 near-drowning incidents, many of which result in disabling brain damage.
• 69% of drowning incidents occurred when parental supervision was absent and the pool was easily accessible. Supervision is always the primary layer of protection.

¹Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) [online]. [cited 2012 May 3]. Available from: URL: https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars.