Letters to the Editor
Letter to the Editor | Drowning Prevention Day highlights need for every kid to learn to swim
July 25th is World Drowning Prevention Day, and this year Swim Safe Gig Harbor is joining together with other local organizations, including Gig Harbor Kiwanis Club and the Tom Taylor YMCA, to shine a light on water safety and drowning prevention. As the Maritime City, water safety is a hometown priority. Gig Harbor residents and families need to be prepared to prevent drowning and recognize its warning signs.
Drowning doesn’t look like it does in the movies. It is fast and silent, and according to the National Drowning Prevention Alliance, can happen in as little as 20-60 seconds. Even good swimmers can drown.
Some drowning facts include:
- According to the CDC, drowning is the single leading cause of death for children ages 1-4. No other single cause of death kills more toddlers and young children than drowning.
- Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury death in children ages 5-14
- There are over 4,500 unintentional drowning deaths each year in the United States.
- Nearly 70% of toddler drownings occur during non-swim time (Source: Safe Kids Worldwide).
- 88% of children drown with at least 1 adult present (Source: Safe Kids Worldwide).
- Drowning doesn’t always result in death. Drowning can cause hypoxic brain injury with moderate to severe impacts on quality of life and health outcomes.
- Children and adults with autism and intellectual disabilities are at a significantly higher risk of drowning.
- Most teenage and adult drownings happen in natural and open waters such as lakes, rivers, ponds, and oceans
As a reminder that drowning can happen to anyone, one local family (who attends Purdy Elementary School) shared their story with Swim Safe Gig Harbor about their drowning scare that happened just this past April during their spring break family trip to Hawaii.
The mother writes:
“While vacationing in Maui over spring break with our three daughters (ages 8, 6, and 3), we spent most of our time swimming at the pool and beach. On the third day of our trip, we were at the pool getting ready to leave for lunch. I got out of the water with our 3-year-old and took off her floaty. I began tidying up our things—inner tubes, towels, and personal items—while the rest of the adults with us (my husband and my parents) were also packing up. We were all nearby—but all distracted. In what must have been just 2 or 3 minutes, I glanced up and saw my 3-year-old back in the pool—without her floaty—and struggling to stay afloat. She was silent. Her head and arms were underwater, eyes and mouth wide open, eager for a breath of air. She didn’t scream. She didn’t splash. There was no sound.
I leapt across the pool deck, pushed everything out of the way, and jumped in. I pulled her out as fast as I could. After a few terrifying seconds, she coughed, cried, and clung to me. She was ok but we were seconds away from tragedy.
There was a ledge that ran along the inside of the pool, where she had been sitting and playing earlier with her floaty on. She must have felt confident and tried to get back in on her own, thinking she could do it again.
I now understand exactly why they call drowning a “silent killer.” She was right in front of us. Four adults watching three kids and in less than two minutes, it happened. She was wearing a bright pink swimsuit—that’s how I saw her.
Even though she’s alive and safe, the moment still haunts me. I see her face. I think about how fast it all happened. I think about how much worse it could have been. She still loves baths, but now panics when water touches her face. The fear and trauma are still very real.
I’m sharing this because I want other families to know: it takes seconds. Even when you’re close by. Even when you’re careful. Please, please don’t look away—even for a moment.
This was almost our worst nightmare. And it’s something I’ll never forget.”
There is no single method or intervention that can eliminate the risk of drowning. However, the risk can be substantially reduced by practicing evidence-based water safety strategies, including knowing the 5 Layers of Water Safety Protection.
One of the crucial layers of water safety protection is swim lessons and learning how to swim. Our Gig Harbor area needs more safe places, like a public aquatic facility, where our children can learn how to swim. It is an essential life skill, especially since our city is surrounded by water. The Red Cross’s Learn-to-Swim-Provider Map clearly shows that our greater Gig Harbor area is in desperate need of more places to safely learn how to swim; there are no Red Cross swim lesson-facilities this side of the Narrows Bridge. Parents should not have to struggle to find places where their children can access swim lessons.
If you are looking for a tangible way you can help with drowning prevention efforts in our town, join us by being a water-safety champion and supporting the Tom Taylor YMCA’s Safe Around Water program. This program aims at teaching all Gig Harbor public school second graders about water safety for one week during the school year. An entire school’s second grade program can be funded for just pennies on the dollar (only $2,000) or you can “fund a student” for only $25. Any donation, big or small, directly funds this life-saving program!
We live in a wonderful place, fellow Gig Harbor citizens! What pride we can have knowing that we unite together for drowning prevention efforts. May all in our beautiful Maritime City “swim safe!”
Heather Maher
Co-founder, Swim Safe Gig Harbor
To support the Tom Taylor YMCA’s Safe Around Water, click here