‘It's deadly': The risks of drowning and knowing how to save a life

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a day ago

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Local first responders would like people to know what to do in case of a drowning.
Austin Public Health said an average of 14 people a year die by drowning in Travis County. Between 2007 and 2016, a total of 140 deaths happened due to unintentional drowning. Half of them were in natural bodies of water — like creeks, lakes or rivers — while 25% of them were in swimming pools.
It's why first responders are highlighting the life-saving power of CPR and of an automated external defibrillator, or AED.
Captain Trevor Stokes with Travis County Emergency Services District No. 2, otherwise known as the Pflugerville Fire Department, joined KXAN's Will DuPree and Avery Travis to mark CPR and AED Awareness Week.Avery Travis: We know this week is really meant to highlight how people can save lives and be safe out on the water. But let's talk about the issue of drowning. How big of a problem is it in Central Texas? I think a lot of folks growing up in this area learned to swim growing up, or were around swimming pools or the lake. Why might that knowledge maybe make us a little lax about the risks of drowning.
Captain Trevor Stokes: So the biggest issue we see is obviously for children, so we recommend putting all the efforts into prevention. Obviously, knowing CPR is a good thing, but at that point, something's already happened. So drowning is silent. It's deadly, and it happens very quickly. So when enjoying water, especially in pools or even an open body of water, like we saw with the incident there at Lake Austin or Town Lake, is having a PFD, wearing a PFD, not just having it near you, but actually wearing it despite your ability to swim. That's a preventative measure. People typically don't drown when they're wearing a PFD. They surface to the top of the water. But more importantly, with kiddos, always having somebody who is watching the children, and then rotating that person regularly. So that's not someone who's reading a book, who's on their phone, they're not distracted, they're watching. Also, if you're in a pool, or if you're in a body of water where visibility is good, having a swimsuit that is not the same color as, say, the bottom of the pool. So that at any moment a kid slips below the surface, you immediately can recognize that. But rotating that person and making sure they understand what their responsibilities are prevents it. Also having likes or any prevention mechanisms so people can't wander off to the water, wander off to the pool, unaided or unassisted or even unwatched, that's a big thing.
Will DuPree: Okay, so those are lots of things that people can keep in mind for sure. But if an emergency should happen, obviously calling 911, is important, but so is the importance of someone being a bystander who can jump in and perform CPR. What's the impact that can have on potentially saving someone's life?
Stokes: So having knowledge of doing CPR and immediately starting that process while someone is calling 911 — it raises the potential for a save so much higher. CPR is an easy skill to learn. Anyone can do it. You can go to pflugervillefire.org. Actually, the Pflugerville Firefighters Association has a free class that goes on monthly. All the information is on our website. There's also a playlist that will help you remember the tempo. But early compressions, early CPR is the best chance to make that a survivable event.
Travis: I think we even have that playlist pulled up so we can give it a scroll and let people see some of the songs you guys are actually trying to make this, you know, even entertaining and catchy, something easy for people to remember and learn and kind of put those skills into practice. I saw a Sabrina Carpenter song on there, and so I'll be practicing my CPR to that later today. So we're showing that resource for people and where you can find it. But I do want to ask for someone who the thought of jumping in as a bystander might be really scary, even if they've practiced, even if they've learned the skills. What would you say to folks, who you know that's a scary moment, to jump in and try to do something like that, if you've only ever practiced, maybe on a practice dummy or in a class?
Stokes: Well, it's interesting. We're doing Stillwater training right now at Lake Pflugerville. Last year, while we were out there doing that, someone actually started drowning while we were there. So as first responders, we're trained to do that. But even that group had a little hesitation, because they're like, surely, this is not happening right in front of us. So even for trained professionals, it can be stressful. The reality, though, is paying attention, making sure that someone is always watching, especially with kiddos, we can prevent that from ever happening.
DuPree: We mentioned a little bit earlier about the device known as an AED, talk to us about what that is and how helpful it can be in an emergency.
Stokes: So an AED is an automated external defibrillator, so it's a piece of equipment that has become very popular in public places all across the world. You'll see them in malls. You'll see them in airports. The way they're designed now is you don't need any training in them. As a matter of fact, some of the manufacturers prefer you don't have some training on, say, another brand, and then have to use that from the time you turn it on, it will walk you through every single step. Those that are located near a pool or a body of water — there's very specific directions drawing the person off before you do it. But other than that, it allows the best chance to restart the heart, should it be an electrical issue.
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