You are here
Search
As summer heats up, safety advocates show children and families how to have fun and stay safe
Washington, D.C. – The summer is one of the most exciting times of the year for kids, but it’s also a time when kids can be at risk for injuries.
Our new, breakthrough report, “Keeping Kids Safe In and Around Water,” provides tips for parents and caregivers to help dispel the misconceptions around water safety. There is an important tip in the report for public policy leaders and elected officials: you, too, are lifeguards for child water safety because smart laws and regulations can make swimming pools, both at home and at community pools safer.
Our infographic includes everything you need to know about the danger of drowning in lakes, rivers, ponds, oceans and other open water—and what you can do to keep kids safe.
Our children are entitled to drink and bathe in clean water. As we’ve read about in the news, the children of Flint, and all residents, don’t have access to clean, safe drinking water.
Everything you need to know about a misleading term that takes the focus off real water dangers.
You may have seen postings on social media about “dry drowning,” stories about kids who seemed perfectly fine after getting out of a pool, ocean or lake and then, suddenly, as much as a day later, end up with breathing difficulties and die.
It’s terrifying – but the fact is that this kind of sudden “dry drowning” with no prior symptoms just doesn’t occur.
by Kaitlyn Recchiuti
On August 1, 2014, my beloved 27-year-old son “Benjo” drowned in the Bahamas while practicing for spearfishing. Benjo was extremely adventurous, artistic, outgoing and he had a great sense of humor. He was also an accomplished athlete; a state champion alpine skier, sailing instructor and SCUBA instructor with over 1,500 logged dives. The fact that he lived on top of and underneath the water for the better part of his shortened life made his death even more incomprehensible.
The calendar tells us that summer starts on June 21. But for me, summer starts on Memorial Day weekend, when I join aunts, uncles and cousins at the beach to open our old family cottage for the season.
Whatever your plans are for your family this summer -- barbecues, swimming and boating, camping and hiking, long family road trips -- Safe Kids is here with our top summer safety tips to help keep your adventures as safe as they are fun.
Q. I’m really excited for our family vacation to the beach this summer. I have two teenagers – a 13-year-old son and a 15-year-old daughter. Both are good, safe swimmers, who I trust in our backyard pool. Does that mean they should be fine in the ocean as well?
It’s great your kids are confident swimmers at home. While that experience is a good start at the ocean (or in other places like lakes), there are some important differences that you and your kids will want to talk about before everyone hits the beach.
Even during these challenging times, to many of us, Memorial Day is the official start of summer.
It’s a time to remember the people who gave so much for our country, a time to be with family and friends and a time to take a break and have some fun.
So while you relax and continue to adjust to a “new normal,” remember these tips to keep your family safe this Memorial Day and beyond.