Tom Anderson
News Editor

Out of all the most common ways to die, very few have the statistics to match those of drowning. Consider that, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 3,482 accidental drownings in this country in the year 2000, or an average of nine per day. The same agency also reports that children under five and adolescents between 15 and 24 have the highest drowning rates.

Meanwhile, closer to home, the Orange County Fire Authority says that swimming pools are 14 times more likely to be involved in the death of a child age four or younger than a motor vehicle is.

With such sobering figures in mind, one probably wonders what, if anything, can be done to curb these trends.

Here are some useful and potentially life-saving tips for staying safe around large quantities of water:

• Surround your pool with a 5-foot tall fence, and make sure that all gate latches are out of children’s reach. Also, the latches should be self-closing and self-latching.

• If a child is swimming or playing around water, an adult must be at arm’s reach and watching at all times, meaning no reading, talking on the phone, drinking alcohol or any other distracting activity.

• Keep a phone handy near any pool, just in case.

Tom Anderson can be reached at tanderson1@ulv.edu.