Drowning – Saving Someone in Distress
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How many times have you heard of the rescuer being drowned?
Over the last few years I haven’t been able to ignore the tragedies-people drowning in our lakes, rivers, and pools. But what struck me as the most tragic was that some of the fatalities were people attempting to rescue a drowning person. They in turn, became the victim.
The statistics are staggering!
In Matlock and Winnipeg Beach, in 1 summer, there were 4 incidents involving a drowning person and a rescuer going under. In all 4 cases, neither came out of the lake alive. And in the summer of 2009 in St. Malo, a drowning person made it to shore but the rescuer drowned. Such an overwhelming tragedy.
It was because of these tragedies happening so close to my cottage that I created “The Safety Factor.” It was my way of reacting to senseless deaths. I thought, “This is terrible, but what can I do?” Having already worked in media, I thought that informing people of their options and resources, and talking them through the steps of “what to do in case” would be my contribution.
This episode is shot in the summer, but drowning can happen at anytime of the year, in a hotel or public pool, in the lake, a river, ditches, or during a hot winter vacation where there is water.
The sad fact is that this list is endless.
Panicking makes us strong.
If someone were in distress in the water right in front of you, would you be a successful rescuer or the 2nd victim? With a rush of adrenaline, a drowning person has a lot of strength to easily overpower their rescuer in an effort to stay alive; even a child could pull an adult under the water. Strong swimmers could be at risk too. But this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t help.
There are ways to safely help someone in distress, in the water. Using resources from The Lifesaving Society in Manitoba, this video shows the steps lifeguards take to save someone while keeping their own safety in mind. And these are things that you can do.
More information on drowning prevention and public education can be found at: www.mb.lifesaving.ca
