Rules For Safety In Swimming

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29713, 5 January 1962, Page 11

Rules For Safety In Swimming

Water safety concerns anyone who goes swimming—at beach, lake, or river—because anyone who observes a few simple rules of water wisdom will enjoy swimming without running the risk of drowning, the National Water Safety Council says. The first necessity is to be able to take care of yourself in the water. This entails learning to swim, breathing correctly, floating and treading water. There is no difficulty about learning to swim. Children can be taught at classes arranged by schools and adults at public classes Whether you can swim or not, make a point of bathing in safe places, the council says. At many beaches red and yellow flags indicate the safe .places, and assure you that there is a life-saving patrol on duty. Very few people have drowned on patrolled beaches, so it obviously pays to swim there. About 1400 trained life-savers are on duty each summer, giving people ample opportunity to swim in a safe place. The council says that if you must swim at a beach where there is no patrol, then choose your beach carefully Watch out for these danger signs: a violent and jumbled surf; “dumpers"—waves which break suddenly from the top in shallow water and which can force a swimmer to the bottom and possibly break a limb; dirty water off shore, indicating holes in the sea floor; and strong currents. Swim With Crowd

A good way, to keep out of trouble at unpatrolled beaches is to swim with the crowd.

Rivers, lakes and streams are more dangerous than beaches, according to drowning statistics. Be doubly careful in such swimming places. Don’t swim in any such place if you are not sure of its safety, says the council. Don’t take any swimming place for granted. Rivers and streams are likely to change without warning. It is best

to scan them for hidden hazards before each swim. Look out for tree trunks, branches, snags, or boulders under the water, or for holes in the river bed.

Remember the current may be strong enough to sweep you away and that icy water from snow-fed streams can easily cause cramp. Keep near the shore and be safe. Remember that when you swim in a secluded river or stream you may be a long way from help. Diving

Diving is fun, but it can be dangerous if you are careless. Always check your diving place beforehand to make sure it is deep enough. Do not take for granted that it is the same as last year—look for hidden dangers. Take special care if you dive off rocks at the beach at low tide. Never dive in the dark. Every year, one or two people are drowned while fishing from rocks. Always ensure that you are well out of the reach of waves, not just the average ones, but the occasional big one that leaps out of nowhere. Do not go too far out on the rocks, you may slip and fall in and you are more likely to be caught by a big wave. The keynote of water safety for children is constant supervision, the council says. From the time they can crawl, until the early teens, they must be supervised whenever they are near water. Whenever your children swim, make sure there is a responsible adult or teen-ager to supervise them. Constant Watch

The supervisor should not swim but should make sure by watching constantly that nobody disappears or gets into trouble, ana by counting heads frequently, if there are more than two or three children swimming.

Children should be taught swimming and instructed in the rudiments of water safety as soon as possible. They should still be supervised until they acquire enough discretion to look after themselves in the water.

It is wiser for anyone who cannot swim well to assist from the shore a bather in difficulties rather than to rush in and possibly share his fate. Throw a line, a lifebuoy, or something else that is buoyant, or go out in a rowing boat. If you have to swim to reach someone in trouble, push a plank ahead of you, and let him grab the other end.

Water safety is your business. You may say, “It will never happen to me” when you think about drowning, but it is better to be sure than to be proved wrong the permanent way, says the council.