The Facts on Pool Drowning and Why Pool Fences and Barriers Are an Absolute Necessity

At DCS Pool Barriers, the most important thing we do is save lives by building barriers around your pool that significantly prevent accidents from happening. In Arizona, you are likely to use your pool almost every month of the year, which makes it even more critical to take every safety measure possible. We are more than happy to look at your Arizona pool and share with you the safety measures you should be taking. Consider some of the below statistics:

• Each day in the United States, nine people drown.
• For each death caused by drowning, there are 1-4 nonfatal submersion accidents serious enough for the victim to be hospitalized.
• Drowning is the second leading cause of accidental injury-related death among children ages 1 to 14.
• Drowning is the leading cause of accidental injury-related death among children ages 1 to 4.
• Among children ages 1 to 4 years, most drownings occur in residential swimming pools.
• Four-sided fencing that isolates the pool from the house and the yard has shown to decrease the number of drowning injuries anywhere from 50 to 90 percent.
• Nonfatal drownings can result in brain damage that may result in long-term disabilities including memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning.
• Roughly 5,000 children 14 and under go to the hospital because of accidental drowning-related incidents each year; 15% die and about 20% suffer from permanent neurological disability.
• Seventy-seven percent of those involved in a home-drowning accident had only been missing for five minutes or less when found in the swimming pool; 70% weren’t expected to be in or near the pool at that time.
• The most common place for a 1-4-year old child to drown is in a home swimming pool.
• In nearly 9 out of 10 child-drowning deaths, a parent or caregiver claimed to be watching the child.

Sources: “Water-Related Injuries: Fact Sheet.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. March 12, 2007.
“Water-Related Injuries: Fact Sheet.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. June 12, 2008.

For more information on Pool Barriers and Pool Safety Codes for your city go to: /swimming-pool-fence-and-pool-barrier-building-code-information/