{"id":13912,"date":"2025-07-03T15:26:34","date_gmt":"2025-07-03T19:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/?page_id=13912"},"modified":"2025-07-03T15:27:24","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T19:27:24","slug":"13912-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/archived-news-releases\/2025-regional-news-releases\/13912-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Mount Rogers Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>July 3, 2025<br \/>\n<strong>Media Contact:<\/strong> Brianne Kilbourne, <a href=\"mailto:Brianne.Kilbourne@vdh.virginia.gov\">Brianne.Kilbourne@vdh.virginia.gov<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Mount Rogers Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips<\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Celebrate the Fourth of July Safely<\/em><\/p>\n<p>MARION, Va. \u2013In Virginia, nearly 500 people have accidentally drowned over the last five years. In fact, drowning is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/drowning\/data-research\/facts\/index.html\">leading cause of death<\/a> in children. If you are celebrating the holiday weekend near any body of water, Smyth County Health Department offers drowning prevention tips to keep you healthy and safe while swimming.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhether you\u2019re at the pool, Holston Lake, or the New River, drowning can happen in an instant. Supervision, life jackets, and smart choices can save lives. Let\u2019s make safety a part of every swim this summer.\u201d Meagan Helmick, PhD, MPH, CHES\u00ae, Director for Mount Rogers Health District advised.<\/p>\n<p>Drowning often occurs quickly and silently. Unlike the movies, drowning doesn\u2019t usually involve thrashing and shouting. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/draft-drowning-prevention\/\">signs of drowning<\/a> are more subtle and last only 20-60 seconds before the person goes under.<\/p>\n<p>Smyth County Health Department offers these preventions tips:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Provide <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/adult-supervision\/\">active supervision<\/a> 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><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/learn-lifesaving-skills\/\">Learn CPR<\/a>. 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 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/open-water-and-beach-safety\/\">swimming hazards<\/a> 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 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/life-jackets-and-floaties\/\">life jackets<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Make sure pools have the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/environmental-health\/environmental-health-services\/swim-healthy\/pool-safety-features\/\">proper safety features<\/a> 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 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.swimhealthyva.com\/\">swimhealthyva.com<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>July 3, 2025 Media Contact: Brianne Kilbourne, Brianne.Kilbourne@vdh.virginia.gov Mount Rogers Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips Celebrate the Fourth of July Safely MARION, Va. \u2013In Virginia, nearly 500 people have accidentally drowned over the last five years. In fact, drowning is a leading cause of death in children. If you are celebrating the holiday weekend [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":518,"featured_media":0,"parent":12292,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[823,1058,1064,366,243,1062,266,1047],"class_list":["post-13912","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","tag-cpr","tag-drowning-prevention","tag-drowning-tips","tag-meagan-helmick","tag-mount-rogers-health-district","tag-swim","tag-swimhealthyva","tag-swimming-hazards"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Mount Rogers 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\/public-relations-contacts\/archived-news-releases\/2025-regional-news-releases\/13912-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Mount Rogers Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips - Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"July 3, 2025 Media Contact: Brianne Kilbourne, Brianne.Kilbourne@vdh.virginia.gov Mount Rogers Health District Shares Drowning Prevention Tips Celebrate the Fourth of July Safely MARION, Va. \u2013In Virginia, nearly 500 people have accidentally drowned over the last five years. 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