{"id":13859,"date":"2025-06-30T16:01:56","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T20:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/?page_id=13859"},"modified":"2025-06-30T16:02:16","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T20:02:16","slug":"entral-shenandoah-health-district-shares-drowning-prevention-tips","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/entral-shenandoah-health-district-shares-drowning-prevention-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"Central Shenandoah Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>June 30, 2025<br \/>\n<strong>Media Contact:<\/strong> Rachel Dumene, Rachel.dumene1@vdh.virginia.gov, 540-480-4998<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Central Shenandoah Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Celebrate the Fourth of July Safely<\/em><\/p>\n<p>STAUNTON, Va. \u2013In Virginia, nearly 500 people have accidentally drowned over the last five years. In fact, drowning is a <u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/drowning\/data-research\/facts\/index.html\">leading cause of death<\/a><\/u>\u00a0in children.\u00a0Whether you are celebrating the holiday weekend at the pool, the beach, the river or the lake,\u00a0Central Shenandoah Health District (CSHD) offers drowning prevention tips to keep you healthy and safe while swimming.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBeaches and pools are frequently associated with playful fun or casual relaxation, but they can pose a serious health risk \u2013 especially to young children,\u201d says Dr. Allison Baroco, acting Health Director for CSHD. \u201cActive supervision of children around water helps prevent childhood drownings. Supervising adults should avoid distracting activities, like being on a phone or reading a book.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Drowning often occurs quickly and silently. Unlike the movies, drowning doesn\u2019t usually involve thrashing and shouting. The <u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/draft-drowning-prevention\/\">signs of drowning<\/a><\/u>\u00a0are more subtle and last only 20-60 seconds before the person goes under.<\/p>\n<p>Central Shenandoah Health District offers these prevention tips:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Provide <u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/adult-supervision\/\">active supervision<\/a><\/u> for all children in the water. A responsible adult should watch children closely when they are in or around water. Adults should not be distracted or engaged in other activities, even if lifeguards are present. For preschool-aged children, \u201ctouch supervision\u201d is recommended, where the supervising adult is within arm\u2019s reach of the child.<\/li>\n<li>Learn to swim. Knowing how to swim can reduce the risk of drowning.<\/li>\n<li><u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/learn-lifesaving-skills\/\">Learn CPR<\/a><\/u>. Make sure we know what to do if someone needs help in the water.<\/li>\n<li>Always swim with a buddy. Never swim alone.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid swimming after dark. Signs of drowning are harder to see.<\/li>\n<li>Watch for <u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/open-water-and-beach-safety\/\">swimming hazards<\/a><\/u> like rip currents and rough waters.<\/li>\n<li>Observe any advisories and listen to lifeguards.<\/li>\n<li>\u201cFloaties,\u201d arm bands, water wings are toys, <strong><u>not<\/u><\/strong> safety devices. When these toys are in use, the caregiver must still provide active supervision. Wear U.S. Coast Guard-approved <u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/life-jackets-and-floaties\/\">life jackets<\/a><\/u>.<\/li>\n<li>Make sure pools have the <u><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/pool-safety-features\/\">proper safety features<\/a><\/u> in place to help reduce the risk of injury.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Stay vigilant this summer. Let&#8217;s make our pools and beaches safer for everyone! Visit <u><a href=\"http:\/\/www.swimhealthyva.com\/\">swimhealthyva.com<\/a><\/u>\u00a0for more information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>June 30, 2025 Media Contact: Rachel Dumene, Rachel.dumene1@vdh.virginia.gov, 540-480-4998 Central Shenandoah Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips Celebrate the Fourth of July Safely STAUNTON, Va. \u2013In Virginia, nearly 500 people have accidentally drowned over the last five years. In fact, drowning is a leading cause of death\u00a0in children.\u00a0Whether you are celebrating the holiday weekend at [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":518,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[536,195,823,197,1031,1048,897,868,1047],"class_list":["post-13859","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","tag-allison-baroco","tag-central-shenandoah-health-district","tag-cpr","tag-cshd","tag-drowning","tag-rip-currents","tag-safety","tag-swim-healthy-va","tag-swimming-hazards"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Central Shenandoah Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/entral-shenandoah-health-district-shares-drowning-prevention-tips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Central Shenandoah Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips - Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"June 30, 2025 Media Contact: Rachel Dumene, Rachel.dumene1@vdh.virginia.gov, 540-480-4998 Central Shenandoah Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips Celebrate the Fourth of July Safely STAUNTON, Va. \u2013In Virginia, nearly 500 people have accidentally drowned over the last five years. 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