Pool Safety

Top 10

DOs and DON'Ts

of

Pool Safety

    Every year more than 300 children under five years old die in residential swimming pools in the United States.  Some 2,000 more are treated in emergency rooms for submersion injuries such as brain damage.  Sadly, most of these accidents occur in a pool owned by the child's family, friend or neighbor.

    Here in North Haven firefighters have had the unfortunate experience of responding to incidents where children have died or have been seriously injured because the ;pool was either unsupervised or because pool owner failed to follow basic safety procedures.

    Drowning is a silent death, and it happens very quickly.    A child can drown in the time it takes to run in the house and answer the phone.   Most victims are missing from sight for less than five minutes.

    Please follow these basic guidelines to ensure a season of safe swimming.  Remember, if you need help, call 9-1-1 immediately.

DO:

• Learn to swim and teach your children to swim.

• Check the pool immediately if a child is missing.  Seconds count in preventing death or disability. 

• Take your children with you when leaving the pool, even for a second.

• Enclose the pool completely with a self-locking, self-closing fence with vertical bars and an alarm that sounds when the door is opened.

• Make sure parent, guardians and baby-sitters know CPR.

• Secure doors and windows that allow access to the pool.

• Keep basic lifesaving equipment such as a pole, rope and flotation device by the pool and know how to use it.

• completely remove your pool cover before using the pool.

• Empty wading pools immediately after use and lean them against a wall so that water can't collect inside them.  Children can drown in as little as one inch of water.

• Keep a phone by the pool so you can call 9-1-1 in an emergency.   Don't use the phone in the pool.

DON'T:

• Ever swim alone.

• Rely on flotation devices or inflatable toys to replace parental supervision.  Such devices could suddenly shift position, lose air, or slip out from underneath the child, leaving the child in a dangerous situation.

• Keep furniture or anything on which a child can climb near the pool or fence.

• Keep toys in the pool when the pool isn't in use.  Toys, tricycles and other playthings lure children to the pool.

• Take your eyes off your child, no mater what skills your child has acquired or how shallow the water.

• Leave your child unattended, for any reason.

• Operate electric appliances near the pool.

• Store pool chemicals or supplies in an area accessible to children.

• Allow diving in a shallow pool.

• Leave the stairs or ladder down on an above ground pool when the pool isn't in use.

    If you would like a copy of the Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts of Pool Safety,  free of charge, stop by Fire Headquarters, 11 Broadway, during normal business hours.

Pool safety information adapted from:

• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

• Pool Safety Guide

• The American Red Cross

    The Top 10 DOs and DONTs of Pool Safety is Copyright 1997 by Message Management.  Anyone interested in obtaining information on distributing this brochure by their organization may do so by contacting the North Haven Professional Firefighters Association.