Strollerderby
Top 5 Tips to Keep Kids Safe Around the Pool
Last summer, while my sister, her husband, and their nanny were watching three 2-year-olds (my son, Ronan, and their twins, Aaron and Gretchen) in a 12-inch deep kiddie pool, my son somehow managed to flip himself over in a floatie (that he had also somehow managed to climb into himself).
But my sister, her husband, and their nanny didn’t notice.
It was someone else completely, a stranger to me, who ran into the pool in his sneakers and socks to pull Ronan out.
Thankfully, he was fine, but the whole incident reinforced something I’d long suspected: the more adults there are at the pool, the less safe the kids are. When there are so many adults present, everyone always assumes someone else is watching.
1. So that has become our number one rule around the pool: Always assign one adult to watch one kid, or two kids, or however you want to work it. But always make it clear. Don’t assume that all the adults will be watching all the kids. It just doesn’t work.
If you’ve never seen a child slip under water before, you might be surprised at how silent it is. The child doesn’t splash, or scream, or thrash around in the water. He just slips right under, completely quiet. That’s what makes it so scary; you might think you’d notice the sound of a child drowning, but the fact is, there is no sound. That’s why someone always needs to be watching.
Here are some other tips from the Orlando Sentinel:
2. Never leave a child alone in the water, even if it’s a few inches deep. And even if you think the child can swim. She could get caught underwater, hit her head, or simply get tired in the middle of the pool. A child can drown in seconds, so even if you have to just run into the house to grab a towel, make sure someone is watching the kids, or bring them inside with you.
3. If you own a pool, use a pool cover and a fence. We have a pool with a locked electric pool cover and locking metal fence. No one is getting in the pool without us knowing about it.
4. Learn CPR.
5. Teach your child to swim! Take classes, teach him yourself, or ask a friend. If your child is under the age of 4, consider signing him up for a water survival class, which teaches toddlers and even infants to roll onto their backs should they fall in the water.
Are there any pool safety rules you think the Sentinel missed?
Photo and source: Orlando Sentinel
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5 Comments
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amA good point. We adults can very easily get distracted with our conversations. Another good thing to have at the pool is a phone so someone can call 911 in case of emergency.
elohveeee12 commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amthe second part of number 1, I never knew that. I have never seen a child drowning, but I assumed they would make noise. And just reading that freaked me out, I got goosebumps all over and I now feel sick to my stomach.
But I really appreciate the info. I am sure it will come in handy this summer.Though there must be some age limit to the no noise thing, when my brother was about 5 (he may have been 6, he didnt learn how to swim for a reallly long time), he fell into the hot tub and he screamed and thrashed.
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amThe exact reason why I tell people I love having them over, but I am not the pool police. Kids are always welcome, but you watch your own. No.questions.asked. I’ve had parents tell me their kid wants to swim in our pool and tell me it is ok for him to go alone because she doesn’t have time to watch. It won’t be happening. And I do know first hand that a child going underwater is silent. My middle child usually wears a suit and lifejacket combo, except the one time when I was washing the suit. He didn’t understand that he would sink and the water was over his head, I was walking towards him when off the edge of the last step he went. It was only a second but it scared the bejesus outta me.
Alice, you rock!!! You are welcome in our pool anytime.
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amGreat point. I live in Florida, and we have people over to the pool all the time…your “one adult per kid” rule is a good one. Glad your little one was OK!
Anonymous commented on Jan 01 70 at 12:00 amI was swimming with a friend and our kids a couple of years ago. The friend was sitting in a chair and I was talking to her while standing on the stairs. Out of the corner of my eye I saw movement near me. Nos sound, no splash, just a dark patch in the water a couple of feet away. I reached over instinctively and pulled out my friends 3 year old! That kid climbed to the top of my head sputtering and crying. She had taken off her water wings and had stepped off the bottom step into the pool. There was a lifeguard on duty 10 feet away and none of us saw anything or heard anything. The lifeguard was so upset she quit the following week. She was shaking and crying. My friend must have been on Valium since she was pretty okay and because I even got lightheaded once we calmed the child down. Three adults, 3 kids and no one saw or heard this child drowning feet away. Good thing I am nosy. When parents talk to each other they are not watching their kids.
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