Never leave your
children alone in or near the pool, even for a moment.
We recommend
that you put up a
safety fence to separate your house from the
pool. Most young children who drown in pools wander out
of the house and fall into the pool. Install a fence
at
least 4 feet high surrounding your entire pool. This
fence will completely separate the pool from the house
and play area of the garden. Use gates that are
self-closing and self-latching, with latches higher than
your childrens' reach.
A pool safety
cover adds to the protection of your children
but should not be used in place of the fence
between your house and the pool.
Keep rescue
equipment (such as a shepherd's hook or life ring)
and a telephone by the pool.
Do not let your
child use air-filled "swimming aids" when
unsupervised, as they are not a
substitute for approved life vests and may be dangerous.
Never consider children to be 'water-safe' because
they've had swimming lessons. There are no 'water-safe'
children.
All toys
should be removed from the pool after use. Toys, in or
around the
pool, are a temptation to children. After the
children are done swimming, lock the pool gate so they
can't get back in to the pool area.
All electrical equipment, including radios and CD
players should be kept away from the pool area.
No
drugs or alcohol when you plan to use the pool.
Here
is a guide for parents of children under 5. COMMON
SENSE IS THE KEY
to all of these pool safety recommendations:-
Doors leading to the pool
should be kept locked and alarmed if
possible.
Install a safety barrier around
the entire pool, so that the only reason to go through that
barrier is to use the pool. This is a must-do for families with
small children. If this isn't possible, make sure your safety
barrier prevents access from ALL doors, gates and windows
leading into the pool area.
You must assume that a child will try to beat your pool safety
system.
If you don't think this is true, YOU ARE WRONG! The reasons
for this are very simple to understand:
1. A child does not
always know right from wrong. 2. All children are
attracted to the water/pool. 3. A child does not
know or understand fear.
4. You can't trust
a child's judgement.
If a child can't be found, immediately,
CHECK THE POOL
FIRST. Time is
critical!
When having a party, designate a child watcher
for pool safety. Adults become preoccupied when socializing and
often assume someone else is watching the kids.
No one should ever swim alone.
Teach your children this.
Never dive into the shallow end.
Since children learn by
example, parents should follow these pool safety tips too.
Stay out of the pool during thunder and lightning storms.
Remember,
if a child cannot be found, CHECK THE POOL FIRST - a
child can drown in a matter of minutes.
Use
common sense, and pool fencing, to protect children and
babies
With
kids in the home and a swimming pool in the garden, supervision is
the No. 1 way to keep your children safe from injury or drowning.
But supervision, by itself, is not nearly enough to ensure pool
safety.
According to the
Consumer Product Safety Commission, of all the
swimming pool accidents involving small children, 77% of the victims
had been seen by a parent/guardian within the past five minutes.
Almost 80% of swimming pool accidents occurred when both parents
were at home and watching the child!
Experts at the National Spa & Pool Institute, the Consumer Product
Safety Commission and the
American Academy of Pediatrics agree that
pool safety barriers are always necessary. The fence should be
a minimum of 4 feet high with a self-closing, self-latching pool
gate
. All Guardian pool safety fence systems meet these standards.
