Mastodawn

Martin Roukala (né Peres)5d ago

Trish Greenhalgh

Every summer I repost this article on how to spot drowning. Please read it and pass on. In the last few years I’ve had SIX messages from people who saved a kid’s life after clicking on the link from my feed. slate.com/technology/2...

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Dro...

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning

Drowning is not the violent, splashing call for help that most people expect.

Slate

Safety In Numbers May 23

Free simulator teaches how to identify swimmers in distress/drowning. Important: drowning ppl can be dangerous to untrained rescuers. Call for lifeguard! If none can help, push float/object toward drowning person, avoid letting them grab you directly, esp in deep water. spotthedrowningchild.com

Spot The Drowning Child

Spot The Drowning Child

Can you spot the drowning child in this crowded wave pool? An interactive public service announcement. To the untrained eye, drowning can look just like swimming. The Instinctive Drowning Response is frequently missed, even by people nearby.

David Sainez May 23

I think this video is telling. It is the complete opposite of how it is portrayed in media: no obvious flailing, no screaming for help.

Wavepool Lifeguard Rescue 4 - ...

Wavepool Lifeguard Rescue 4 - Spot the Drowning!

YouTube

David Sainez May 23

Here is another video where the person drowning has been struggling for a longer time. If they were in a crowded pool it would be extremely easy to miss, but it is clear that they were almost completely exhausted by the time the surfer rescues them.

Olympic kitesurfer rescues wom...

Olympic kitesurfer rescues woman struggling to swim off coast of Brazil

YouTube

Lenz Grimmer May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social there's a website where you can train spotting drowning children:

http://spotthedrowningchild.com/

Spot The Drowning Child

Can you spot the drowning child in this crowded wave pool? An interactive public service announcement. To the untrained eye, drowning can look just like swimming. The Instinctive Drowning Response is frequently missed, even by people nearby.

@lenzgr @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social

This is very real for me. I was rescued from the local indoor swimming pool, by the lifeguard, when I was 10 years old. He did so well to spot me and rescue me.

My camera shoots fascists May 23

@lenzgr @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social

Wow, this is a really good resource. It took me a while, but after 10 of the videos I was able to start spotting them pretty quickly. Also, being a lifeguard is a hard job! Wow.

Luz Change May 24

@lenzgr @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social
Wow it really seems like pools shouldn't allow inner tubes. They allow kids who can't swim to end up in the deep end where it's possible to fall off or let go of the tube, unlike life jackets or water wings. Both of the videos I watched that was how the child ended up drowning.

Christian Klüber-Demir 🏈May 24

@lenzgr @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social

I'm quite impressed, thanks for sharing!

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social This 🔺

Jonathan B ✈️🪄👨🏻‍💻May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social Thank you - the article is paywalled but you can read it if you switch to reader mode.

@jmb @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social THANKS! I never knew you could use reader mode like that. I assume it doesn't always work?

There's this too: https://ndpa.org/drowningdoesntlooklikedrowning/

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning - NDPA

Drowning is fast, silent, and can happen in as little as 30 seconds. No Splashing with Drowning. No Waving. No Yelling.

NDPA

Interpipes 💙May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social @Thayer I’ve read this before and agree it’s super important, but sadly, it’s now behind a paywall.

Archive.org has the full article archived, though!

https://web.archive.org/web/20190208061603/https://slate.com/technology/2013/06/rescuing-drowning-children-how-to-know-when-someone-is-in-trouble-in-the-water.html

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning

The new captain jumped from the deck, fully dressed, and sprinted through the water. A former lifeguard, he kept his eyes on his victim as he headed...

Slate

@interpipes @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social nice one thank you 😊

@pineywoozle ‘s #3WordNote May 24

@interpipes Thank you for posting the link. @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social @Thayer

Auntie Mame May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social The first time I saw someone almost drown was in a hotel pool in Egypt. Grown man, got tired/faint. I didn’t notice he was drowning until a pool attended spotted it and jumped in to save him. It was uneventful and unbelievable at the same time. He was fine, regained his energy, and went back to his room.

Heleen Kuiper May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social @B123 i can’t read it. Can you tell us what it looks like?

Leanne J May 24

@heleenkuiper @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social
@B123 Archived here https://web.archive.org/web/20190208061603/https://slate.com/technology/2013/06/rescuing-drowning-children-how-to-know-when-someone-is-in-trouble-in-the-water.html

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning

The new captain jumped from the deck, fully dressed, and sprinted through the water. A former lifeguard, he kept his eyes on his victim as he headed...

Slate

Dave Clark May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social they gated this article about how to save lives :(

Mr. Bill May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social ~ That most important lesson from my lifeguard days: "A drowning person will drown you." 👍

cognitively accessible math May 24

@bmacDonald94 @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social but also ... esp in swimming pools ... no, they don't look like they're drowning.

CaliCarol May 23

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social

I'm very glad you repost this! I forget the signs and it reminds me.

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social Why 6 messages? It sounds good.

WilliamBob May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social -thank you.

这个真的太重要了，每年夏天都值得转发。之前看过类似的科普，才知道溺水时人根本不会大声呼救。感谢你一直在分享这个。

CynBlogger™️ ❌👑May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social
Thanks for posting!

Broadfork May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social @HumToTable I was only talking to someone the other day about this thread.

It’s a powerful message. I read it last year and it’s stuck with me how a child can be drowning near to their parents without them even knowing. Hollywood has a lot to answer for.

So pleased this information has saved lives.

David Hay May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social
True. I once spotted a kid bobbing up and down, gasping for breath each time he surfaced. Soundless, because all he could do is breathe in.
I went and grabbed him, held him up by his ankles. Got there in time, thankfully.
This was in a crowded resort swimming pool. Nobody else had noticed.

Daniele10 May 24

@trishgreenh Can you link your helpful article to a site with no paywall?

Beldarak May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social

Had this as a kid. My mother eventually noticed my cap pointing out of the water once I sank

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social
Article so long it is drowning you in lore, Tldr :

Look for these other signs of drowning when persons are in the water:

Head low in the water, mouth at water level

Head tilted back with mouth open

Eyes glassy and empty, unable to focus

Eyes closed

Hair over forehead or eyes

Not using legs—vertical

Hyperventilating or gasping

Trying to swim in a particular direction but not making headway

Trying to roll over on the back

Appear to be climbing an invisible ladder

SamUpstate (he/him)May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social @masnick.com I still had this open in a tab from when you shared it last year 🙂

DavidM_yeg May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social

Essential water safety advice…

“When they get quiet, you get to them and find out why.”

Dr. Jürgen Knödlseder May 24

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social @JanetGrBr It’s hot… but it’s still spring, for almost another month.

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social I read/heard a statistic somewhere (BBC's more or less, I think) that a large proportion of people that die of drowning, drowns because they are trying to (inexpertly) help another drowner. In part because of the reflexes mentioned cause drowners to drown others. Could you comment on this?

Trish Greenhalgh 6d ago

Yes I've heard that too.

@trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social But that is kind of an argument *not* to help drowning people, cruel as that may sound.