At a Boys & Girls Club pool in North Lauderdale on Thursday, swim instructors and volunteers turned a regular afternoon in the water into a crash course in survival. After a recent surge in child drownings across South Florida, kids lined the deck to practice floating, rolling onto their backs and reaching for the pool edge, all to buy a few crucial seconds until an adult can step in.
According to WSVN, organizers at the Boys & Girls Club hammered home a blunt reminder: it only takes a second. Stations around the pool walked children through float-to-breath drills and other basic survival moves. "That is not just one child that is drowning; that is one less seat at the table," Shana Lorde, president of Diversified Swimming, told the station.
WSVN also spoke with Cassie McGovern, executive director of Every Child a Swimmer, who lost her one-year-old daughter to drowning in 2009 and now works to expand access to low or no-cost lessons. McGovern urged caregivers to enroll children in classes and learn CPR. "Just do something and get involved," she told WSVN, noting that Every Child a Swimmer offers scholarships and partners with local swim schools to reach families at highest risk.
Where the numbers stand
Public health groups say the statewide toll is moving in the wrong direction. In a July 3 news release, Nicklaus Children's Hospital reported that Florida had already recorded more than 62 drownings this year and warned that the pace could push the state past last year's total, which advocates described as the deadliest on record. Health leaders say many of the recent child drownings have happened in and around residential pools, which is why outreach and formal lessons are now front and center.
Local programs and resources
Broward County's public health officials and community partners operate Water SMART Broward and a Drowning Prevention Task Force that provide lesson-coupon programs, lifeguard scholarships and outreach to multi-unit housing complexes, local officials say. The Florida Department of Health in Broward County notes that it offers swim-lesson coupons to help offset costs for families and sponsors scholarships to build up local instructor capacity.
What parents should do
Experts are urging what they call a layered approach: active, hands-on supervision at all times; four-sided pool fencing with door and window alarms; U.S. Coast Guard approved life jackets when boating; formal swim lessons; and CPR training for caregivers, a strategy outlined by Nicklaus Children's. Families are also encouraged to name a single "water watcher" during gatherings and to start lessons as soon as a child is ready. Local coupons, scholarships and instructor programs are available to help reduce financial barriers.
Organizers say parents who need help finding lessons or financial support should visit the Florida Department of Health in Broward County's drowning prevention page and the Every Child a Swimmer program for scholarship partners and local class listings. Nearby Boys & Girls Club branches can often point families to Water SMART Broward coupons and open lesson slots.
