HENRICO COUNTY, Va.-- A new CDC study shows drowning deaths are on the rise in the United States, for the first time in decades.
According to the CDC, more than 4,500 people died due to drowning each year from 2020 through 2022. That’s 500 more per year compared to 2019.
The agency believes access to basic swimming skills could prevent these deaths.
Inside Goldfish Swim School in Henrico County, 2-year-old Camryn Kilgour is learning lifesaving skills.
"Camryn’s got a lot of confidence," said her parents," Guy and Heather Kilgour. "We've got a lot of confidence in it since seeing her around the water, and it's kind of eased us a little bit."
The Kilgours enrolled their daughter in swim lessons at just one years old.
"We had a lot of nerves about her being around water," Guy explained. "We just felt like it was a safety concern for her not to have any sort of training whatsoever."
That fear is healthy, as drowning remains the leading cause of death among children ages 1 through 4.
"It’s sad, you know, we hear the statistics, and I just feel like people need to play a bigger role, pay a little bit closer attention," Guy said.
It’s not just children. Almost 40 million adults in the U.S. don’t know how to swim, and over half have never taken a swimming lesson, according to the CDC.
"We want to do everything we can to get those numbers down," said Samantha Armitage, Goldfish Swim assistant general manager. “80% of drownings could actually be prevented with swim lessons.”
Armitage believes it’s never too early to get kids comfortable in the water.
"Children under one years old still have really magnificent reflexes," she noted. "They're able to turn themselves over in the water or grab the wall, things that can save their lives."
Every second counts because research shows drowning can take as little as 20 seconds.
"If one child drowns, it's one too many," said Guy Kilgour. "And so I think everybody should have access to this. It shouldn't be it shouldn't be an elite thing."
Goldfish has partnered with the nonprofit “Every Child is a Swimmer” to help struggling families afford these lifesaving lessons.
The Kilgours say they leave the pool every week with confidence knowing their little girl can now enjoy and respect the water.
"That's a huge, huge check in my book," explained Guy.
Goldfish has some additional life saving tips if you are heading to a pool, lake, river or ocean for Memorial Day Weekend.
Make sure your child is wearing a bright colored swimsuit, have an approved floatation device if they can’t swim on their own and designate a water watcher, a person whose job is to keep their eyes on kids, even if there’s a lifeguard. They say that extra set of eyes can save lives.
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