Some water safety tips before summer hits

There were at least four drowning deaths in the Valley over the weekend of those aged 2, 4, 54, and 78.

In 2022, there were 142 drowning incidents reported in Maricopa County with 68 incidents involving young children aged 0-5 and 67 involving adults aged over 18, according to data from Children's Safety Zone. Of those 142 incidents, 60 resulted in fatalities.

In 2022, drowning was the most common cause of death in children aged 1 to 4 years old in Arizona, according to data from the Arizona Department of Health Services. Adults are also at risk by swimming impaired or alone, especially older adults who may have a stroke or heart attack in the water, according to board member of the Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona, Lori Stauffer.

"There is no one thing that you can do, it's a combination of actions to reduce that risk of drowning," Stauffer said.

Here is how you can have a safer summer in the water.

Stauffer stressed the importance of supervision while young children are in any body of water.

"Adults have to keep their eyes on kids when they are in and around the water," Stauffer said. "They cannot be distracted by anything else."

If a child is under the age of five, a guardian should be close enough to touch the child while they are in the water.

Children should never be alone near a pool or any water source. This includes bathtubs, buckets, toilets, ponds and canals.

"Barriers become the number one layer of protection because we don't have our eyes on our kids 100% of the time," Stauffer said. "You need to have something that keeps them away from water."

A barrier surrounding water sources could be a fence, a pool cover, or shutting the bathroom door. Be aware of moving items that children could climb over near a fence outside or near a neighbor's fence.

"The law does not require you to have a life vest on when you're in open water, we still highly recommend you keep it on," Stauffer said. "We've had adults drown in our lakes and rivers and had they had a life vest on, it wouldn't have happened."

Stauffer said she heavily stresses learning to swim, especially when supervising children. Accidents can always happen; it is important to be prepared, she said.

"The person watching the kids around water... they need to know how to respond if there is an emergency," Stauffer said.

CPR is the last line of defense for preventing a fatal drowning incident and has potential to restore oxygen to the brain.

Swimming lessons are available at some City of Phoenix Pools locations. The American Red Cross offers CPR classes across the Valley online and in person. They offer lifeguarding classes as well as free online swimming and water safety classes for parents and caregivers.