Canada Red Cross - Pool Safety

Water Safety Fact Sheets/Checklist
from the Canada Red Cross website:
http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=001037&tid=024

Canada Red Cross - Nova Scotia Region

133 Troop Avenue (Burnside Industrial Park) Dartmouth, NS B3B 2A7

Phone: (902) 423-3680

Fax: (902) 422-6247

Water safety 1-877-356-3226

Water Safety Facts

- Drowning is one of the leading causes of death for Canadian children aged one to four.
- For every toddler who dies from drowning, it is estimated there are three to five additional near drownings, which require hospitalization. [some resulting in permanent brain damage]
- In nearly half of the infant and toddler drownings, the victims were alone.
- A small child can drown in only a few inches of water – enough to cover the mouth and nose.
- Drowning can occur in less time than it takes to read this safety message.
- The most common location for infant drownings is the bathtub.
- Home swimming pools account for 38% of toddler drownings.

Since 1991, only 4% of reported toddler drownings were in pools with self-closing and self-latching gates.

If all home pools were equipped with self-closing and self-latching gates, nearly all toddler pool drownings and about one-third of all toddler drownings could be eliminated.