Drowning incidents kill more than 175,000 children annually and about 3 million children survive but suffer injuries for very long periods of time afterwards. The highest permanent health injuries due to drowning are associated with brain damage and in turn drowning has the highest average lifetime health and economic impact of any other injury. There are simple steps you can take to keep your child safe and far away from becoming a part of this growing number.

1.) Never leave your child unattended in a swimming pool, Jacuzzi, or even a small wading pool. It can take less than a minute for a child to drown.

2.) Pools should be fenced in and equipped with self-locking gates. This includes neighborhood pools, apartment complexes, and backyards.

3.) Do not leave containers in the backyards where they can fill up with rain water. Since 1973, an estimated 500 children have drown in 5-gallon buckets and similar containers left full outside.

4.) Children should be given swimming lessons but they should not be considered “water-safe” until they are at least 14 years old. Never let your children swim alone.

These are just a few examples of ways to keep children safe from drowning incidents; any body of water can pose a treat to their safety and should not be neglected.

If you or someone you know has suffered in any way from tragic, water-related injury contact our Ohio child injury lawyers at 1.800.637.8170 for information or a FREE copy of our book Little Kids, Big Accidents.