Water safety has always been top priority in my family. I love the water, but I know it can easily end a child’s life without proper safety measures. This is why we stress water safety for all of our children. They begin swimming lessons in Mommy & Me classes as young toddlers and continue until they are strong swimmers. In fact, our oldest two are now on swim teams, and my teenager is starting her first job as a lifeguard this summer.
The ZAC Foundation was started by Zarchary Archer Cohn’s parents. He was only 6 years old when his arm was trapped by the suction of a drain in a pool, and he drowned. They want to ensure that children and their parents know how to be safer around water through education and advocacy. They have a great wealth of water and safety tips as well as resources and programming for parents and kids of all ages.
One of the best ways is to follow the ABCDs of water safety:
ADULT: Never let children be alone near or in a pool, ocean, lake, or river. Children should be taught to never swim without an adult present.
BARRIER: Have a four-sided fence that goes around your pool with a self-locking gate.
CLASSES: Kids and adults should take safety classes like swim lessons and CPR.
DRAINS: ALL swimmers should stay away from all pool and spa drains to avoid becoming trapped by the suction. Drains are a hidden danger that many parents don’t think about.
What is drain entrapment? It can happen when a person or something attached to a person, like long hair or a bathing suit, gets sucked down into the drain in a spa or swimming pool and then trapped by the force.
How do you prevent an entrapment? Please watch this video on drain entrapment and see how you can protect your children.
- Have drains regularly checked by a licensed maintenance professional.
- Shut down the pool or spa immediately if the drain cover becomes loose or falls off. No one should enter the pool or spa area until a licensed professional repairs the drain cover.
- Install an emergency pump shutoff system and anti-entrapment drain covers on your pool systems.
The ZAC Foundation wants to make sure that kids and their parents know more about water safety through education and their programs. They target children ages 5-9 with most of their programs, but you can find lots of water safety tips as well as resources and programs, like their ZAC camps, both for parents and kids of all ages.
The ZAC Foundation is giving away 15 Summer Fun Kits (ARV $50) now through June 13th!
- The ZAC Foundation Children’s Book: The Polar Bear Who Couldn’t, Wouldn’t Swim
- Beach towel
- Wristband
- Water Watcher Card
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
27 comments
This is a good reminder! My son knows how to swim now, but I would never leave him alone at the pool and I always make sure there is a barrier between him and any pool.
I have always told my kids to stay away from the drains in a pool. They are scary and can cause such damage to a child.
This is so so so important! My mother’s older brother drowned when he was a little boy, before she was born in their family pool so we have had it drilled into our heads and I have done the same with my kids. We all love to swim but it can happen in an instant, especially the drains…
I love this post to build awareness to such an important and preventable topic… I speak to my kids all the time about water safety and plan to get them into swimming lessons this summer!
I honestly didnt know the ABCDs (although I did know A!). These are great tips for pool safety.
Now that summer is fast approaching, these tips would really come in handy. My brother almost drowned when he was 9 years old. He was unaware that he was already in the deep end of the pool and when he did, he started to panic. That was so scary! I will pass this on to my sister and cousins who still have small kids.
I’m hoping to get my girls in swim lessons soon. I think it’s very important to learn how to swim. I took the classes when I was younger, and then I learned most of it on my own too.
This is really great information to know. My grand kids have all been taught to swim but accidents do happen if safety isn’t taken seriously.
It is so important to teach your kids about water safety. I had my kids in swimming lessons as soon as they were old enough to start.
Wow this is indeed a cause that is so important and something a lot of parents would not think to worry about. The Zac Foundation is such an amazing thing the parents started and I love that they are giving away 15 Summer Fun Kits. I will have to share the ABCD water safety with my sisters and nieces.Thanks for sharing this awesome information and great giveaway.
Water safety is also my top priority. This sounds like a great program and I hope they will raise lots of awareness.
This is super important information as summer swim season is about to start. I’ve heard of drain entrapments. I remember diving down to the drains as a kid. Thankfully, nothing bad happened.
Thank you for reminding me about the ABCDs of water safety. Perfect reminder since my son will be taking swimming lessons this summer.
I have always told my son to stay away from the drains in a pool. Love your post!
Water safety is seriously so important. As a former lifeguard and wsi, I can not say enough how important the ABCDs of water are!
So important to be safe in the water. I need to take swimming classes for the kids. My son knows how to swim but I’m not very comfortable in the water.
Great advice!!!! I learned about drains not too
Long ago. We were staying at a hotel with a hot tub. My daughter sat against a drain and it left a huge mark on her back from sucking on her. Never knew until then just how strong drains are! Crazy!
Water safety is such a priority and a major concern! You have to make sure that everyone is safe around the water at all times!
I had my son take swim lessons and we go over the rules every summer.
It’s definitely important to keep the ABCD’s of water safety in mind – both children and adults!
We are trying to find swimming lessons in our area for our grandkids but until then someone is always in the pool with them.
It is SO important to remind all of us about water safety. Accidents can happen so fast. It’s truly scary. Thanks for the post to help keep everyone mindful!
They all had YMCA swim lessons
I teach my daughter to always notify an adult before jumping into the pool. She’s a decent swimmer but not perfect yet.
we are signing our grandson up for swimming lessons
Swimming lessons are a good starting point.
I have always told my niece to stay away from the drains in a pool