Drowning deaths in Washington state and in the nation have been steadily declining for the past 20 years. Yet unintentional drowning remains the second-leading cause of injury-related death among children ages 1 to 14 nationally and locally.
Washington state’s rate (1.4 child drowning per 100,000 population in 2005) is slightly above the national average. Each year, about 25 children die of drowning in our state and 30 are hospitalized after nearly drowning. For every child who drowns, four or five receive emergency care (although they may not be hospitalized) for near-drowning. Some suffer permanent brain damage.
“Clear Danger: A National Study of Childhood Drowning and Related Attitudes and Behaviors” was prepared by the nonprofit organization Safe Kids USA in 2004. Researchers conducted child and parent surveys and tabulated 2000 and 2001 child death-by-drowning statistics from 17 states, including Washington. Among the findings:
• 88 percent of children were under some form of supervision when they drowned. Many times the supervising adult was distracted.
• 61 percent were ages 4 and younger, and were most likely to drown in pools, wading pools, hot tubs and bath tubs.
• 23 percent were 4 to 9 years old and were most likely to drown in open water.
• 17 percent were ages 10 to 14 and were also most likely to drown in open water.
• 72 percent were male and 28 percent were female.
• 97 percent of those who drowned in pools or open water were not wearing life jackets.
• 74 percent of those who drowned did not know how to swim.
• 6 percent drowned in the known presence of a lifeguard.
• Nationally, African-American and American Indian children have drowning rates 50 to 70 percent higher than white children’s.
Washington state statistics, compiled by the Washington State Department of Health, are similar. Sixty-three percent of drowning victims are male and 90 percent do not wear a life jacket. However, the difference between African-American and white children is less pronounced in our state, while rates for other minorities are significantly higher.
“Drowning Death Rate per 100,000 Population for Washington Children Ages 0-17, 1994-2003” indicates that Native American and Asian children have significantly higher drowning rates compared to whites: 4.9 children and 2.7 children per 100,000, respectively, vs. 1.5 children per 100,000 for white children.
Dr. Linda Quan, a pediatric emergency medicine physician at Seattle Children’s Hospital, has been studying drowning statistics and promoting prevention for 30 years. She notes a gap in swimming skills: 60 percent of African-American children cannot swim well, while 31 percent of white children cannot swim well. Lack of swimming skills and drowning rates are higher among some Asian sub-groups.
“Some groups are much less culturally acquainted with being around water,” she says. In the case of African-Americans, she points out that historically blacks were segregated from swimming pools and their lifestyles became less water-oriented. Quan also notes that some in the black community have cited other concerns, from not liking to be cold to not wanting to ruin elaborately-prepared hairstyles.
Immigrant groups and newcomers to Washington have higher drowning rates, she adds, noting a blip in drownings among Russians in the 1990s and recent spikes in teen drowning deaths in our region’s Vietnamese community. Modesty can be a concern among some Hispanic groups and Muslims. “The adults tell us they are not comfortable getting in the water or wearing bathing suits,” Quan says. If there is a fear of water, it can be passed on from parents to children.
