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Pool Safety
According to the Royal Life Saving Societies 2007 National Drowning Report, 35 children between the ages of 0-4 drowned in 06/07.
The majority of these drowning deaths resulted from the child falling or wandering into the water, with the backyard swimming pool being the most common location. This summer, most children will have access to a backyard pool, either at home or through neighbors, friends or extended relatives. But as any parent or grandparent will tell you, it is nigh on impossible to watch small children at every moment, so home pool fences are a vital back-up to make sure children don’t enter water unsupervised.
Even if a pool has a fence, what happens if that fence has a gap, either from a missing panel or where land has subsided underneath? Or the lock doesn’t catch properly? Or the kids have propped it open to make it easy to run from the house into the pool?
With summer approaching, The Royal Life Saving Society Australia has produced a simple checklist to promote pool safety. “We are asking every pool owner to get out into their backyard this weekend and make sure it is safe and secure.” said Royal Life Saving CEO, Rob Bradley. “Pool Fencing legislation has now been in place for 10 to 15 years and many fences and gates have badly deteriorated,”
The checklist addresses common pool safety issues including electricity, chemicals, supervision, fencing and emergency preparation.
To download your free copy of the checklist or for more information on pool safety, go to http://www.royallifesaving.com.au/www/html/2160-home-pool-safety-checklist.asp?intSiteID=1
