Do not let your kids wear this colour in a swimming pool?

In Australia, drowning is one of the leading causes of death.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2019 shows that drowning is the number one cause of death in 1-3 year-old children.

According to Royal Life Saving Australia, “Most deaths in children aged one occurred in backyard swimming pools (53%) and during the summer months (39%)” and “Almost all of these deaths were due to a lack of active adult supervision.”

WATCH VIDEO: Royal Life Saving National Drowning Report 2020

Recently, the Australian Facebook group CPR Kids, which is run by registered nurses, shared this photo and issued a stark warning to parents.

“Going for a swim this weekend? Make sure you dress the kids in bright and colourful swimwear so that they are easier to see at all times. Remember; drowning is silent, and every second counts.”

CPR Kids’ experts advise all parents that their child should be dressed in bright colours so they are visible in a swimming pool.

Look at the image below. What do you see underneath the water here?

Take a good look at the image above. Can you see anything? A child?

At first the above photo appears to show an empty swimming pool.

CPR Kids Facebook post further notes, “It’s hard to believe, we know! Following on from our post recently on the importance of fluoro and bright coloured swimwear for kids, one of the CPR Kids Educators was at a pool party with friends and noticed how cloudy the water had become after being used all day. She asked one of the children who was wearing a pale blue swimsuit, to swim to the bottom. The result shocked her – as it did everyone in the CPR Kids team!”

“Just a note- this was taken at roughly 2pm, after a few hours of use. The cloudiness was likely due to sunscreen etc. in the water as this is usually a clear pool,” the post added.

At public swimming pool, lifeguards may find it harder to see children who are wearing blue or green bathing suits especially when they are at the bottom of the pool. 

Therefore bright orange, red, or neon colors. are recommended for kids.

Royal Life Saving Australia under its Keep Watch program recommends that groups of adults allocated a designated ‘pool watcher’ when around kids playing in the water.

In and around a swimming pool, adults should Supervise, Restrict, Teach and Respond to keep children safe.

‘Kids can’t help themselves around water, you need to.’

WATCH VIDEO: Water Safety for your Child