Children at YMCA Swimming Lesson with instructor

Water Safety Tips

Republished with permission from ACTIVE FOR LIFE

According to the Canadian Lifesaving Society, drowning is the number one cause of unintentional injury deaths among children between 1 and 4 years of age, and the second leading cause of preventable death for children under 10.

Learning to swim is the best way to stay safe and prevent drownings. The society says that to survive an unexpected fall into deep water, the minimum skills you need to be able to do are:

  • ROLL into deep water
  • TREAD water for one minute
  • SWIM 50 metres

Even if you’re not interested in water sports or activities, it’s important to know the basics of swimming if you’re ever near water or on a boat.

Bottom line: learning to swim saves lives.