The death of a six-year-old girl who drowned while at a swimming lesson at Kallang Basin Swimming Complex is absolutely heartbreaking. It just reminds us – yet again – to always be alert and aware of the safety rules when your kid are in the pool.
Six-year-old Sherlyn Ler, who could not float or swim independently without support, was at a 7pm swimming lesson with other students on 20 December 2017. The Straits Times reports that her instructor led her to the middle of the pool to teach her to swim to the pool’s edge with a swimming board, but then turned to focus on other students for a few minutes.
About four minutes passed before two other girls noticed Sherlyn floating face up in the pool, and alerted a lifeguard. She was given CPR and rushed to hospital, but it was too little too late. She died a few weeks later on January 9, from “a lack of oxygen and blood flowing to the brain”.
“Drowning is known to occur quickly and quietly between 20 and 60 seconds,” says State Coroner Kamala Ponnampalam. The water was between 0.8 to one metre deep, and Sherlyn was just 1.11 metres tall. Her mother was seated nearby, but reportedly became “distracted by her phone and when she turned to speak to other people.”
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Swimming is one of the most exciting and memorable activities for children. Sadly though, drowning is one of the leading causes of death for children, especially toddlers, worldwide. So if you have a swimming pool or regularly bring your kids to one, then you have to make sure that you take certain precautions.
Pools can be fun yet very dangerous for toddlers because they think that they can do anything including walking on water. No matter how well-behaved a child may be, he or she will still be very curious and at risk for drowning. A lot of toddlers drown because of parents who think that their children are too well-behaved to jump into the pool. It is every parent’s responsibility to keep their children safe no matter what their personality or behaviour may be.
Here are 8 water safety tips every parent should bear in mind:
