BOISE, Idaho — May is Water Safety Month which was created to recognize the popularity of swimming in the summer and raise awareness of how to stay safe in and around water.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, drowning is one of the top five leading causes of accidental injury and death, and Idaho ranks ninth in the United States for deaths by drowning.
KTVB spoke with Mike Kapuscinski, the Executive Director of the Downtown Family YMCA, to get some tips to be water smart and be more comfortable around water.
First, when taking a kid to a public pool always keep constant supervision when they are in or around water. This applies even when lifeguards are on duty.
Kapuscinski said parents are the first line of defense. So, if your child is in the water, you should be too.
Next, is to keep a life jacket on hand. Kapuscinski says wearing a lifejacket can save your life and help bring everyone home after a fun day in the water.
Kapuscinski also recommends enrolling your kid or teen in swim lessons.
"The bottom line is swim lessons not only allow your child to be safe around water,” Kapuscinski said. “They build a lifetime of confidence for their mastering a skill that's not common to human beings."
Not only are swim lessons good for kids but, adults as well.
According to the CDC, about 40-million U.S. adults say they don't know how to swim.
Kapuscinski said that one major reason many adults don't know how to swim is a generational issue because their parents didn't learn to swim, they didn’t, and the cycle sometimes continues, and their kids don't learn to swim.
Other reasons could be because they remember a traumatic childhood experience or they're embarrassed, but it is never too late to learn to swim.
The Treasure Valley YMCA provides swim lessons for ages six month to adults. Adults will be able to learn from the basics to improving skills and swimming strokes to be more proficient just in time to go on vacation or summer rolls around.
"I would say sign up now, all of our swim lessons for the summer are already posted online. Whether it's at the Y or somewhere else, just do it,” Kapuscinski said. “It will save your life and it may save somebody else's life."
Director Kapuscinski says for those people that don't think they can afford to put their kids in swim lessons, the YMCA provides financial aid to help with the burden of paying for the lessons.
Now, if that aid is still not enough, Kapuscinski said they will find a way to help provide access to the lessons.
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