Clark County officials and members of the Southern Nevada Child Drowning Prevention Coalition (SNCDPC) kicked off the annual "April Pools Day" drowning prevention awareness campaign on Monday.
Clark County hosted the event at Wet'n'Wild Las Vegas water park water park, located at 7055 S. Fort Apache Road. Clark County and the local cities take turns hosting April Pools Day each year to promote drowning prevention during the spring and summer months when swimming pools are in highest use in the Las Vegas Valley. Drowning Prevention Coalition partners include Clark County, the cities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas and Henderson , local fire departments, Clark County's Building and Parks and Recreation departments, University Medical Center, pool builders and supply companies, Clark County Safe Kids, Southern Nevada Health District, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police, and other agencies and organizations.
"Drownings can occur anytime during the year in our community but the risks increase as the weather warms up and swimming pools are in high use," said Clark County Commissioner Susan Brager, an active member of the SNCDPC. "We are proud to work with the Health District, the local cities and many other community partners on this important public safety effort to keep children safe anytime they are near water."
As part of this year's event, the Southern Nevada Health District in cooperation with agencies involved in the SNCDPC unveiled a new outreach campaign that reminds the public to always keep these three steps in mind to prevent drownings:
- Patrol – Always designate an adult Water Watcher to actively watch children in the water, including pools, bathtubs, or other bodies of water.
- Protect – Install barriers between your home and pool to ensure safety including fences, door alarms, locks and spa safety covers. Lock doggie doors children can't crawl through them.
- Prepare – Create a water safety plan for your family. Enroll children in swimming lessons, take adult CPR classes, and be sure to equip your pool with proper safety equipment including life jackets, personal floatation devices and rescue tools. If an emergency happens, have a telephone nearby to call 9-1-1.
Drowning is the leading cause of injury-related death among Clark County children aged 1-4 years, according to the Southern Nevada Health District. Since 2012, there has been an average of 44 submersion incidents each year (near and fatal drowning) among Clark County children aged 0-14, the majority of which occurred in residential pools. Additionally, since 2006, there has been an average of 7 fatal drownings each year among children younger than 15 years old, most of which were among 1-4 year old children. With more than 110,000 residential swimming pools and about 3,400 commercial pools and spas throughout Clark County, the drowning risk for young children is ever present.
"The hardest calls we respond to are those that involve child drownings," said Clark County Fire Chief Greg Cassell. "One of the most important messages we try to get across during our April Pools Day event and throughout the year is to remind the public that under no circumstances should you ever leave children near a pool or any other body of water without adult supervison."
As part of the new, rebranded drowning prevention campaign, Child Drowning Prevention Coalition members are encouraging all adults to take a pledge to be a Water Watcher every time children in their care are in or near water. Parents also are encouraged to ask about Water Watcher plans whenever they leave their children near water and under the supervision of another adult. Pledge cards will be distributed in English and Spanish at outreach events in the community and available at www.GetHealthyClarkCounty.org to be printed out. Photos and video of the public taking the pledge and supporting the effort can be shared on Facebook using the hashtags #NVWaterWatchers and #PoolSafely. The Health District also has Water Watcher lanyards that are available while supplies last for adults who take the pledge. Visit the Get Healthy Clark County website for more information about the "Be a Water Watcher" pledge effort, a partnership with the national Pool Safely campaign sponsored by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission.
"Drowning can occur quickly and quietly," said Dr. Joe Iser, Chief Health Officer of the Southern Nevada Health District. "Adults supervising children who are swimming, bathing, or around any bodies of water should always be close enough to reach them at all times, and should not be involved in any other distracting activities. It only takes a few seconds for a child to drown and it can happen silently, even if other adults are present. We are pleased to work with our partners to get this important public health and safety message out to the community."
Clark County's Building & Fire Prevention Department and University Medical Center are sponsors of the Health District and Southern Nevada Child Drowning Prevention Coalition campaign. Clark County Television Channel 4 (CCTV) also produced a TV public service announcement to support the effort. The PSA is being distributed to local news media and local government partners. It also can be viewed on the County's website at www.ClarkCountyNV.gov and its social media sites including YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.
The Southern Nevada Chapter of the International Code Council (SNICC) is donating $19,000 to drowning prevention efforts this year. The amount includes $5,000 to support the Southern Nevada Child Drowning Prevention Coalition. The additional $14,000 in funding is donated in $2,000 increments to seven separate jurisdictions in Southern Nevada to provide free swimming lessons to toddlers. The Clark County Commission accepted the SNICC's donation at its March 21 board meeting. The combined donations to the various jurisdictions will provide swimming lessons to more than 400 local area children this year. For information about the grant program, visit the Drowning Prevention Coalition's website at www.sncdpc.org or call (702) 483-8215.