Four Tips for Teaching Water Safety Vigilance to Your Residents

Summertime is when many activities and family events occur outside or near the water. But too often, fun time turns tragic for families across the nation. Every year in the United States, there are an estimated 3,960 fatal, unintentional drownings, including boating-related drowning — that is an average of 11 drowning deaths per day. As we reflect on Water Safety Month and summer kicks off in full force, it’s a perfect time to review why we have a month dedicated to safe water practices. Education and prevention are vital in keeping children and adults safe. As outdoor safety experts, local government park and recreation departments have a responsibility to use their platform to keep water safety at the forefront of their minds during the busy summer months.

To support your education efforts, we’re providing four tips for promoting water safety best practices in your community:

1. Plan Live Learning Events

Utilize your community aquatics facilities and existing programming, such as swimming lessons or clubs, to host live learning events, building individual and family awareness of the risks of swimming in any setting. Create content relevant for parents, teens, and young children, and consider pairing it with a basic first aid and CPR course. Also, ensure your programming is inclusive by tailoring it to address the specific safety needs of adults and children with auditory, visual, and other physical disabilities.

Topics to Cover

If you need a few ideas on subjects to cover in your live events, learning materials, or educational resources, consider the following:

• How to recognize drowning and the best way to call for help if you’re struggling in the water
• Home pool safety and the need for constant supervision of inexperienced swimmers
• The importance and proper use of life jackets
• Natural bodies of water and threats, such as rip currents or other natural environmental risks
• Proper emergency response actions

2. Utilize Social Media to Provide Regular Water Safety Reminders

Use your social media platform and network of followers to provide regular reminders about water safety. To make a more significant impact, leverage dynamic content, host live streams, or create pre-recorded videos you can share with your followers. Ask local influencers and public figures also to share safety messages on their profiles. Coordinate with staff to create fun, practical, and educational videos at the local lake, water park, and other locations. Then, share them with your residents on Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube.

3. Partnerships and Promotions

Utilize other digital communication tools in addition to social media to keep water safety at the forefront of residents’ minds throughout the summer. Emails, posters, and appearances on local television and news programs are all opportunities to amplify the reach of your message. Partner with local experts, such as community swim instructors or your local fire department and leverage their authority to strengthen the impact of your message.

4. When it Comes to Water Safety, Knowledge is Power

A person can drown in less than 60 seconds. The more you can do to keep your public informed of the dangers of drowning and the importance of proper water safety measures and education, the safer you’ll be as an entire community. Provide plenty of learning opportunities and materials year-round and target additional focus during the busiest swimming seasons.