Rappahannock Health District Offers Summer Water Safety Tips
Health department recognizes Healthy and Safe Swimming Week, May 19-25.
By Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
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The opening of some area swimming pools this weekend coincides with the CDC’s Healthy and Safe Swimming Week, which is recognized May 19-25.
The Rappahannock Area Health District on Tuesday provided guidance to ensure a safe summer swimming season, whether in the pool, ocean, river, or lake.
“While water can bring fun and connection, it also comes with risks,” said Olugbenga Obasanjo, director of the area health district. “Even the most joyful moments near water can take an unexpected turn. We encourage families to take simple steps — like supervising children closely and using life jackets near open water — to help make every water activity a safe one.”
Drowning is a leading cause of death in children, the CDC warns. Of the nearly 500 people who accidentally drowned in Virginia between 2020 and 2024, 90 were aged 19 and younger, according to the health district, emphasizing the importance of both learning to swim and learning CPR in order to be able to help prevent accidental drownings.
The health district recommends that adults and children wear U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets near open water and warns that “floaties,” arm bands, and water wings are “not safety devices.”
The guidance also states that swimming in open bodies of water carries the risk of encountering germs that can cause “swimming-related illnesses, diarrhea, skin rashes, pneumonia or flu-like illness and irritation of the eyes or respiratory tract,” and provides the following recommendations:
Don’t swallow the water when swimming. A mouthful of water with germs can make you sick for 2-3 weeks.
Wash with soap and water before and after swimming. Wash your hands for 20 seconds before eating or preparing food.
Cover any open wounds or cuts. Don’t swim if your skin has cuts or open wounds.
Don’t swim or play in water if you or your child has been sick with diarrhea in the past two weeks. Diarrhea and swimming don’t mix!
Use swim diapers on infants and toddlers. Check swim diapers regularly. Take kids on hourly bathroom breaks.
Thoroughly dry ears after swimming to avoid swimmer's ear.
Avoid going in water if there is a green film on the water or if the water is cloudier than usual. Some harmful algal blooms can be dangerous.
More information about swimming pool, open water, and beach safety is available at the Virginia Department of Health website, swimhealthyva.com.
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