Health department promotes water safety to prevent child drownings

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Choosing a life jacketthat is the right size and fit for your child is crucial to protecting them on the water.



Life jackets have to fit in order to work. That's why it's so important that children wear life jackets especially designed for their size and weight.



That is one reason why the ChattanoogaHamilton County Health Department has launched a new water safety campaign in conjunction with the July 4th holiday.



"For children ages 1 to 4 years old, the most common place to drown is in their family swimming pool," Carleena Angwin, health department health educator, said north face clearance jackets in a prepared statement.



The Children's Hospital at Erlanger has already documented eight near drowning cases in the region, three of which resulted in a child's death, according to Angwin.



Nearly 15 percent of children admitted for near drowning die in the hospital and those who do survive can suffer from severe neurological disabilities.



The new safety campaign focuses on four major areas.



1. Since children drown quietly and quickly, keeping your child close enough so you can easily reach them in the water is very important.



2. Life north face jackets clearance jackets save lives while inflatable "water wings" and inner tubes can pop or float away.



3. Make sure your child learns how to swim at a young age since drowning is the 2nd leading cause of death for children under the age of four.



4. Learn CPR and make the seconds count after an accident and before the paramedics arrive.



According to a national study of drowning related incidents involving children, a parent or caregiver claimed to be supervising the child in nearly nine out of 10 child drowningrelated deaths.



A proven intervention for this is to always stay within an arm's reach of your child when he or she is in or near the bathtub, toilet, pools, spas, or buckets, according to the health department.



Other suggestions provided by the department include:



Actively supervise children in and around open bodies of water, giving them your undivided attention.



Appoint a designated "water watcher," taking turns with other adults.



Teach children that swimming in open water is not the same as swimming is a pool. Make sure they are aware of uneven surfaces, river currents, ocean undertow and changing weather.