Recognize the signs of drowning

[Lonnie84]

With fishing and boating season kicking off I thought I would share this little video, you just never know when this information could save someone's life!


https://youtu.be/9fyvtNewabM


The Instinctive Drowning Response -- so named by Francesco A. Pia, Ph.D., is what people do to avoid actual or perceived suffocation in the water. And it does not look like most people expect. There is very little splashing, no waving, and no yelling or calls for help of any kind. To get an idea of just how quiet and undramatic from the surface drowning can be, consider this: It is the number two cause of accidental death in children, age 15 and under (just behind vehicle accidents) -- of the approximately 750 children who will drown next year, about 375 of them will do so within 25 yards of a parent or other adult. In ten percent of those drownings, the adult will actually watch them do it, having no idea it is happening (source: CDC). Drowning does not look like drowning -- Dr. Pia, in an article in the Coast Guard's On Scene Magazine, described the instinctive drowning response like this:1. Except in rare circumstances, drowning people are physiologically unable to call out for help. The respiratory system was designed for breathing. Speech is the secondary or overlaid function. Breathing must be fulfilled, before speech occurs.2. Drowning people's mouths alternately sink below and reappear above the surface of the water. The mouths of drowning people are not above the surface of the water long enough for them to exhale, inhale, and call out for help. When the drowning people's mouths are above the surface, they exhale and inhale quickly as their mouths start to sink below the surface of the water.3. Drowning people cannot wave for help. Nature instinctively forces them to extend their arms laterally and press down on the water's surface. Pressing down on the surface of the water, permits drowning people to leverage their bodies so they can lift their mouths out of the water to breathe.4. Throughout the Instinctive Drowning Response, drowning people cannot voluntarily control their arm movements. Physiologically, drowning people who are struggling on the surface of the water cannot stop drowning and perform voluntary movements such as waving for help, moving toward a rescuer, or reaching out for a piece of rescue equipment.5. From beginning to end of the Instinctive Drowning Response people's bodies remain upright in the water, with no evidence of a supporting kick. Unless rescued by a trained lifeguard, these drowning people can only struggle on the surface of the water from 20 to 60 seconds before submersion occurs.This doesn't mean that a person that is yelling for help and thrashing isn't in real trouble -- they are experiencing aquatic distress. Not always present before the instinctive drowning response, aquatic distress doesn't last long -- but unlike true drowning, these victims can still assist in their own rescue. They can grab lifelines, throw rings, etc.Look for these other signs of drowning when persons are in the water:- Head low in the water, mouth at water level- Head tilted back with mouth open- Eyes glassy and empty, unable to focus- Eyes closed- Hair over forehead or eyes- Not using legs -- Vertical- Hyperventilating or gasping- Trying to swim in a particular direction but not making headway- Trying to roll over on the back- Appear to be climbing an invisible ladder.So if a crew member falls overboard and everything looks OK -- don't be too sure. Sometimes the most common indication that someone is drowning is that they don't look like they're drowning. They may just look like they are treading water and looking up at the deck. One way to be sure? Ask them, "Are you alright?" If they can answer at all -- they probably are. If they return a blank stare, you may have less than 30 seconds to get to them. And parents -- children playing in the water make noise. When they get quiet, you get to them and find out why.

[scrat]

Thank you for posting this and just because you know someone can swim doesn't mean that they can not drown also. If everyone knew this they could maybe save a life. Again thank you sir for this post and video.

[Glenn54]

Great post. Thanks for sharing.

[Mike1234]

Thanks for posting.


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[ET Fish]

Very useful and informative. Thank you.

[Gansett]

My drowning experience. I do not want to hi-jack this thread, only to expand on it. So last March I'm spider rigged and I leaned over to get a minner from my bucket. The metal plate that holds the seat shaft pulled loose from the deck and I went directly, head first into the Alabama River. Some back story. I am 76 years old, could swim when I was 5 years of, was in the U. S. Coast Guard. So going into the water was no big deal. At this point I'm just ticked off for being in the water. I start swimming up and soon realize I have a problem. I'm not going up, I'm still going down. Now when you fall into the water like this with no warning, you go in with the breath you have in your lungs. There is no time to suck in a good lungful of air. Now, what I'm about to say is no exaggeration. I realized I must breathe, there is no choice. So in perhaps a few seconds(?) I tell myself to go ahead and breathe, knowing what will happen when I do. I think also that it's ok, there are worse ways to die. Go ahead, you can't hold your breath any longer. Well, obviously i held on and kept swimming upward and made it. Getting into the boat is a whole story in itself. MY POINT IS, PUT ON YOUR LIFE JACKET. I HAD ONE RIGHT AT MY FEET WHILE IN THE BOAT, AND THAT'S WHERE IT WAS WHEN I GOT BACK IN THE BOAT. NOW I ALWAYS WEAR IT AND SO DOES ANYONE ELSE IN MY BOAT. THEY ARE THE SELF INFLATING TYPE.

[Lonnie84]

Thanks Gansett for sharing your story it really shows just how quick things can happen; I know people that refuse to wear it but will keep their life vest hanging on the back of the seat thinking that would be good enough, as if something were to happen it would be like they were on the Titanic and have time to put it on in an emergency. I always say "I won't need my jacket either until until I need it" but when I need it I won't have time be putting it on.

Case in point; as you might have guessed I'm big on always wearing my life jacket when out on the lake but I'm not perfect there is occasional times when I may not have it on like yesterday when I just needed to back my pontoon boat out of the slip just a little so I could allow room to put a few trees in the front of the dock. Well that all went well but when I was pulling the boat back up in the slip using the trolling motor and standing at the front of the boat a little gust of wind pushed the boat over to the side and caused it hang on the side of dock which was an instant stop. Well thankfully I did not go over the front but man was it close and made for a quick reminder for me to practice what I preach!

[Ketchn]

reading that made me sad , I had a friend years ago lose her son one winter , he was a strong swimmer , but with no life jacket and big ole boots on when those teenagers tipped the john boat over only one survived .
I used to think I was bullet proof ,but now I wear my life jacket ...it might keep you alive someday