Aquatic Safety
The Drowning Problem

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 9 people drown per day in the U.S. For every person who drowns, four times as many people nearly drown. Many of these incidents happen in pools staffed with certified professional lifeguards.

Many of these incidents happen in pools staffed with certified professional lifeguards.If you've been to a poolecently, you've witnessed firsthand the challenges that lifeguards face in monitoring activity within a pool. Not only is it warm, but there are usually lots of swimmers, glare from the sun in some cases, and other distractions. The toughest part of a lifeguard's job is maintaining constant vigilance, and no human being can see everything all the time. But it only takes a second for someone to get into trouble and start to drown. Contrary to what most people think, drowning victims don't yell or wave their arms to alert someone that they arein trouble. They are in a state of shock, and are often silent

The difficulties of lifeguarding by Tom Griffith, Safety expert:

"We spent 100’s of hours filming dummies on the bottom of several pools at Penn State University under perfect conditions, while the water was flat and quiescent.  With the “victim” perfectly recognizable on the bottom under the surface of the water in varying depths, we simply waited for patrons to enter the pool to see what effect a normal, used pool had on the viewing of the victim.  The results were simply amazing.The slightest agitation or disturbance to the surface significantly distorted the view of the victim on the bottom.  As more swimmers entered the water, the victim at times completely disappeared.(…)  But it’s true, the only time you can clearly seed a victim on the bottom is when the surface of the water is completely flat and there is no one else in the pool.  You can demonstrate this in your own pool.  No training in the world will teach a lifeguard to detect that which they cannot see; hence, the need for drowning detection systems."