The Importance Of Lifeguards In Community Pools

 Lifeguards play a crucial role in keeping swimmers and the community safe. Lifeguards can be employed in a variety of settings including but not limited to:

• Community swimming pools
• Cruise ships
• Water parks
• Beaches
• Rivers, lagoons, and other open bodies of water

These are trained individuals who are responsible for supervising the safety and rescue of swimmers and other participants. The expectation is that they come into their job every day assuming that nobody is a skilled swimmer and that even a skilled swimmer can be in distress. With that assumption in mind, they are hopefully less likely to take it for granted. Lifeguards are supposed to have their eyes on the water all the time. When they are scanning the pool area they are more likely to identify when a swimmer is in distress. They are looking for telltale signs of drowning, which are nothing like the way drownings are portrayed in television and movies. But when a lifeguard is hired by a company that manages a pool or other swimming area, and they do not have the right combination of knowledge and experience and competence, then adults and children are swimming at their own risk.

Expertise In Safety Matters

There is no way that an actor can truly reenact a drowning that is accurate. It would be illegal and it’s almost impossible for a person to act out an involuntary action. So, this means that the idea most people have about what drowning looks like is more of an actor’s interpretation, and very far removed from reality. In movies or television shows, a character might call out that they are drowning, or scream for help, or find some other way of calling attention to themselves. In reality, as a victim is drowning water is getting into their lungs. This prevents them from being able to get enough air to call out. In fact, to the untrained eye, a person who is drowning behaves almost identically to someone who is playing. 

This is one of the reasons why drownings can occur when an inexperienced and unqualified lifeguard is hired to watch swimmers because they will make the mistake of thinking someone is playing when they are in need of help.

Lifeguard Training

In order to become a lifeguard, an individual must go through extensive training that includes some classroom learning as well as hands-on learning with an instructor. Lifeguards must be at least 15 years old in most states and have passed a swimming skills test. The American Red Cross is one of the leading lifeguard training programs but there are many other reputable ones that result in the participant receiving certification at the end. At the end of the training, a lifeguard should be certified in:

• CPR
• First aid
• AED administration

Hiring A Personal Injury Attorney

Having a trained lifeguard is a crucial first step to ensuring for swimming safety, but if there are other dangerous circumstances that can lead to drowning, then the cruise ship, amusement park, hotel, or owner of the community pool where the drowning occurred may be liable. If there is overcrowding, a lack of supervision, or if the credentials of the lifeguard are not from a reputable training program, then you need to speak with drowning accident attorneys who can help.

This is a guest blog entry.