As the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) Pool Safely public education campaign marks its 15th year, parents and caregivers can follow these simple steps to keep children safer in and around the water:
- Never leave a child unattended in or near water and always designate an adult Water Watcher. This person should not be reading, texting, using a phone or being otherwise distracted. In addition to pools and spas, this warning includes bathtubs, buckets, decorative ponds and fountains.
- If you own a pool or spa, install layers of protection, including barriers to prevent an unsupervised child from accessing the water. Homes can use door alarms, pool covers, and self-closing, self-latching devices on fence gates and doors that access pools.
- Learn how to perform CPR on children and adults. Many communities offer online CPR training.
- Learn how to swim and teach your child how to swim.
- Keep children away from pool drains, pipes and other openings to avoid entrapments.
- Ensure any pool and spa you use has drain covers that comply with federal safety standards. If you do not know, ask your pool service provider about safer drain covers.
You can read the CPSC recent drowning and entrapment reports by visiting PoolSafely.gov.