#Via Trish Greenhalgh
@trishgreenhalgh
June 19, 2025, 12:22 PM
"Every summer, I repost this article DROWNING DOES NOT LOOK LIKE DROWNING. To date, I know of FOUR kids who were saved after someone who'd clicked on the link learnt how to spot actual drowning. Take time to read and pass on."
Missing video from article is here:
#Via Guay / guay
June 19, 2025, 12:38 PM
"Decent summary for people who prefer video."
Youngest is about to take up his second season as a pool lifeguard. Will have a chat with him about this - thanks for posting.
@lritter It doesn't matter being good at swimming if they're not swimming 😬
@_L1vY_ @lritter @trishgreenhalgh I'm a great swimmer who was way too confident at the sea once and needed to be rescued.
It really doesn't matter how good of a swimmer you are. The sea is ruthless.
But 66% of drowning deaths are people who DID know how to swim. This is about drowning vigilance, which is for EVERYONE!
@_L1vY_ @trishgreenhalgh
Thank you for sharing this. I'd just like to add in that in the case of little kids, red or orange swimsuits help them show up in the pool if they get in trouble. Blue swimsuits make them harder to see in the water.
https://abc7.com/blue-bathing-suit-warning-why-not-buy-suits-toddler-pool-safety/13159882/
That's how it looks to me! Plus some construction-work orange 😆
Thanks for sharing. As a regular visitor to the ocean coast, the part about determining direction of the water flow and swimming perpendicular to it is important in the case of a rip current.
You will never out swim a rip current.
@_L1vY_ @trishgreenhalgh
I live in Sacramento County, which has THREE rivers, a recreational lake & countless private swimming pools. Every summer there is tragedy after tragedy, ALL of which could be prevented.
Please read & heed the article and keep your loved ones alive!
@cynblogger @_L1vY_ @trishgreenhalgh
Yes, Sacramento has far too many incidents.
fire department officials have told me that river rescues are down in their area since:
1. diving was barred at Clay Banks
2. Rangers are patrolling the
waterways more in known problem areas (I've seen them out on jet skis near Nimbus and Clay Banks)
3. alcohol is banned on the river during Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day
The toddler in the following story was rescued in time.
At a park beach one summer, a toddler was crouched in shallow water at her father's feet as he chatted with his brother. She somehow lost her footing and fell face down into the water and couldn't get herself back up.
Luckily, a man walking close by snatched her out of the water almost immediately.
Her mother came running with a scream. The father was confused about what was happening. There had been no sound to alert him to look down. It happened so quickly.
@Hicsumus
It is so fast with children 😓
Yes. That one was shocking to me. I literally watched it happen. It was so fast that a bunch of us would've been too slow even though we jumped up to run over. There wasn't any time to yell at the father. No one would ever dream such a thing could happen in a depth of a few inches of water.
@_L1vY_ one other important thing to know: be careful how you approach someone who is drowning.
They will instinctually try to grab and climb onto anything to get out of the water. That can lead to pulling a potential rescuer under.
Extending something they can grab, like a preserver, or going behind them is safer.
@rlcw I think I said that badly. A drowning person is fighting for their life and not processing information.
they may not recognize an object that is extended and understand they can hold it.
They will also not realize if the thing they are trying to climb or get above is a human attempting to rescue them.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instinctive_drowning_response
@rlcw @bomkatt @_L1vY_ that's interesting (haven't read the sources). Like everyone else, I was taught to be careful of panicked grabbing from a drowning person, to approach from behind, etc
All still a good idea, but interesting if most rescuer problems were from them not being about to handle the water...
@colo_lee I got the info about getting pulled under at PADI rescue diver certification. They teach you to get to people from behind for that reason, and to expect them to not realize you are there to help at first.
It's a real risk, even if I did not manage to post the single most convincing article when citing sources.
@bomkatt @_L1vY_ yes, like I said, I too was taught that. And I believe it's a real risk. Be careful in the approach to someone who is drowning
The thing I found interesting was the claim that the major cause of problems for rescuers was their own inability to handle the water where they were attempting a rescue.
Both of these can be true.
@bomkatt @rlcw @_L1vY_ What Bomkatt is saying is one of the first principles of rescue taught in Red Cross Life Guarding classes. You cannot save them if you cannot breath and they push you under.
In classes you are taught, and practice, how to grab and transport a drowning victim so they cannot pull you under in their panic. You are taught, and practice, how to get behind a thrashing, panicing victim. You are taught dives for entering the water from various heights without losing sight of your target.
Anyone who considers themselves an excellent swimmer should take the course, learn some real skills that are as lifesaving as CPR is. Because the second most dangerous part of saving a drowning victim, is an eager assistant who becomes the next victim, becuase they didn't understand how to safely bring someone to shore, or get them out of a pool. 🫵💪✌️🤝
Can verify all this. I saved my 7 yo from drowning in a pool in Florida, and nearly everyone except my wife and I had no idea until we got him out.
This is the best. Drowning is SILENT. If you can't breathe you can't speak or scream or call.
It's so great to know people were saved because of this!!👍
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