Making our resorts safer
Editorial
Guyana Chronicle
September 2, 2003
THE drowning of popular businessman 'Hemo' Singh at a tourist resort at the weekend will no doubt spur debate on resort safety.
Accidents aren't among the list of happenings resorts schedule, so even as we don't know exactly when death will strike, drowning or loss of life by any other kind of misadventure is the last thing management or patron of a resort expects.
At the same time, patrons have drowned at resorts so often over the past two or three years that the dream of leisure at tourist resorts threatens to become a nightmare if steps aren't taken by resort owners to prevent these deaths.
We were equally saddened last month when a two-year-old New Jersey child wandered away from her guardians and was found at the bed of a lake at a Soesdyke/Linden Highway resort, dead by drowning.
We do not have a ready answer. But we hope that bringing these tragedies to the fore will spur debate and preventive action.
Resort managements and parents, especially those with young children, should always keep in mind the hazards that a pool can pose.
Adults who take children to resorts where pools abound may assume that the danger of drowning occurs only when they aren't keeping an eye on those children. But a common scenario takes place when young children leave the company or protection of their parents or adult guardians without anyone realizing it. Children are drawn to water, not knowing the terrible danger pools can pose.
As we saw in the case of the New Jersey toddler, a young child can drown quickly and silently, often without any splashing or screaming.
The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has cited body part entrapment and hair entanglement as hazards contributing to child drownings at resort pools.
With this in mind, the Commission has provided what it describes as "sound recommendations" for parents to follow to protect and to educate their children about the dangers of drowning.
Resort owners will do well to get to a source or sources of relevant information on how to make resort pools safer for kids and teenagers.
There is also need to take steps to prevent accidents involving older people like Hemo Singh.
The key to preventing these tragedies is to have layers of protection. This ought to include placing barriers around pools or man-made lakes to prevent access. Resort owners should also consider the wisdom of using pool or lake alarms and having lifeguards closely supervising children - and being prepared in case of an emergency.
The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission offers these tips to prevent drowning:
* Fences and walls should be at least 4 feet high and installed completely around the pool. Fence gates should be self-closing and self-latching. The latch should be out of a small child's reach.
* If a resort forms one side of the barrier to a pool, then doors leading from the resort to the pool should be protected with alarms that produce a sound when a door is unexpectedly opened.
* A power safety cover - a motor-powered barrier that can be placed over the water area - can be used when the pool is not in use.
* Keep rescue equipment by the pool and be sure a phone is poolside with emergency numbers posted. Knowing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can be a lifesaver.
* For above-ground pools, steps and ladders to the pool should be secured and locked, or removed when the pool is not in use.
* Pool alarms can be used as an added precaution. Underwater pool alarms generally perform better and can be used in conjunction with pool covers. CPSC advises that consumers use remote alarm receivers so the alarm can be heard inside the house or in other places away from the pool area.
With our resorts are becoming more and more popular, accident prevention should become a bigger priority as they prepare to welcome an increase of tourists and leisure lovers.