Fire Rescue Corner
Summer swim safety
By Captain Jack Swerdloff, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue

The Miami Herald newspaper on Saturday, March 6, 2004, printed this on the front page covering another sad Miami-Dade water tragedy:

"A man lay on the water's edge screaming about the 5-month-old son he nearly saved but now could not find, "I lost him! I had him in my hands but he slipped! I can't swim! I can't swim!" A woman cried urgently for another son, a 3 year-old, "He's stuck inside the car!" She couldn't swim either."

With your help, the underwater rescue divers of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue (MDFR) will hopefully never hear these cries from your family. We have great tips for everyone from the inexperienced first-time parent of a newborn, to the non-swimmers who have put off too long learning how to swim. Read on and act now to do what you can for the ones you love this summer season.

Serving as an MDFR firefighter for 19 years, Robert Reddick has great motivation to volunteer as a certified water safety instructor for the Red Cross. The survivor of a deadly car crash into a canal, a young pre-fire department Reddick lost two friends in that crash. His passion and devotion to volunteer 15 years for this cause is unmatched in our community. In an interview he tells me the absolute brightest thing that can be done this summer is to register for water safety classes NOW! Since our statistics show that Florida children are drowning at an alarming rate (more than twice the national average), he adds to remember that prevention is the key and to register NOW! Supervise, Supervise, Supervise, as it truly only takes the blink of an eye to lose a precious little child forever. The lives of your loved ones depend on your commitment to water safety.

Another great asset to potential new swimmers is an MDFR firefighter and part owner of one of the largest and most well-known swim schools in Miami-Dade County. Firefighter Gerald Little of "Little Swimmers" has 16+ years of instruction and helps administer the American Red Cross program "Swim for Life." His programs have been highlighted in the columns of community newspapers as well as other water journals. The compassionate and enthusiastic swim instructors speak multiple languages and may be able to start with your little one as young as 8 months old.

Swimming fun can last a lifetime by being informed, being involved, and being in charge. Here are some references:

The MDFR website, via miamidade.gov, can be viewed for great water safety information and helpful tips.

"Little Swimmers" information can be found via the web at littleswimmers.net or call their office at (305)-383-SWIM (7946).

Statistics and safety tips from within our state and throughout the US can be seen at the CDC 2003 Healthy Swimming website: http://www.cdc.gov/healthyswimming.

Learn to swim and/or check out the Swim for Life program information at the Health and Safety Department of the Red Cross at www.miamiredcross.org or call at (305)-644-1200 ext. 182.

Check with your local community centers and city governments. Many of them provide summer swimming lessons and will surely be glad to help.

Saving lives begins not with MDFR, but with you! Prevention is the key, so please enroll in water safety and swimming classes now!

Monthly life safety homework: Conduct a pre-emergency evaluation of your home and surroundings where water is present. Check items such as screen door locks, pool covers, and any body of water (full buckets, canals, and fountains have all been deadly). Do you have a rescue throw cushion or bottle prepared for the canal behind your elderly mother's home? Try to imagine any possible place a neighbor's child could get into trouble on your property or in your neighborhood. You will be legally, and even worse, emotionally liable if a little one wanders into a water tragedy at your home.



Caption: Scenes like this of an MDFR diver handing off a lifeless body are preventable. Prevention is the key to a safe summer. Prevent water tragedies with the ones you love by enrolling those who can't swim now. Do not delay and stay involved in the activities of you children. Saving lives begins with you.
 

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