BALTIMORE — Summer sun draws people to pools for some fun and relief from the heat. That also draws some risks, particularly when it comes to children.
One minute--- that's all it takes for a child to drown, according to Dr. Adrian Holloway, a Pediatric Critical Care Physician at University of Maryland Children’s Hospital and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
He says they are seeing a rise in drowning and near drownings of children in unsafe pools in Baltimore.
"Safe pools, meaning pools that are open that have lifeguards that are available have become an issue in the city in the past couple of years. And several of the pools themselves are now closed,” said Dr. Holloway.
He says kids are looking for a place to hang out and get rested from the heat. This gives them to access water in unsafe ways, many spots that are unsupervised.
"Not only are they accessing the water but also overestimating their swimming ability, underestimating the danger and depth of the water. And then some of their peers, more afraid of getting into trouble because they're some place they should not be are delayed in calling 911 or calling rescue,” said Dr. Holloway.
Dr. Holloway said there are about 10 drowning deaths per year in the state and several have already happened this summer.
"I’ve been in some close calls, but I’ve never been that afraid in my life when I saw his head hit,” said Michael Colligan who lives in Baltimore.
Just last week, Colligan said his son had a near drowning experience while on vacation where there were no lifeguards. He said it only took two seconds of turning his head for this to happen.
"He was teaching himself how to do backflips and I didn't see it and he did a backflip off the edge and hit his head on the side of the pool,” said Colligan.
Luckily, Colligan used to be a lifeguard which allowed him to jump into action when this happened.
Markeara Hall, who runs a summer camp in Baltimore, brought 14 kids to the Druid Hill pool. She says her training in CPR is why she feels prepared.
"So my mom actually owns a CPR and first aid company, so our children, as young as three-years-old know how to do CPR,” said Hall.
When it comes to saving lives, Dr. Holloway says more needs to be done teaching children about water safety, CPR and swimming. And that more recreational pools need to be available and fully staffed.
