It seems there is no end in sight as police confirmed another case of drowning yesterday. A five-year-old boy drowned during a family picnic in Vunidogoloa Village, Savusavu on Monday.
The stats are shocking and should be a major concern. In fact we should all be concerned, and we should be forced into action, to fight this sudden rise in numbers. This calls for a united front from all stakeholders. This latest incident has compelled Fiji Swimming operations manager Trisa Cheer-Dunn to call for urgent action on creating increased awareness on water safety.
We are glad someone like her has spoken out. We can’t be sitting back, hoping this will just all go away. We can’t even be thinking this was just a bad dream. Clearly, it wasn’t, and the rising number of deaths is a reminder for us all of what we must do. This latest tragedy marked the ninth drowning death in a span of three weeks.
Ms Cheer-Dunn said it was imperative for parents and guardians to be alert about their children’s whereabouts and what they were doing. She offered advice. People should have a “buddy system” while going out to swim.
“People should not go anywhere on their own and if you know you can’t save a person drowning, and you are not a good strong swimmer, please do not try to attempt to save, otherwise instead of one person drowning, we will have two drowning,” Ms Cheer-Dunn said.
“What a person could do instead is to look around for something you can throw to that person to grab on to, to hold while you go and get help.”
Basic swimming lessons, she said, should be made compulsory at all schools. Schools should also have posters and flyers with water safety messages to remind children of the importance of learning to swim.
For those in the North who are keen to learn how to swim, Fiji Swimming is in Labasa conducting school holiday swimming programs for children and adults.
This started yesterday and goes on until Saturday. The fact that 32 people have lost their lives in drowning incidents this year compared with 25 for the same period last year must trigger some sense of responsibility, and concern in us all. Otherwise we will continue to be dragged down by the shocking state of affairs we find ourselves in right now.
We realise there are loved ones who are greatly impacted by the recent spate of drowning. There are ways out of this predicament.
There are ways we can protect our young ones and ourselves.
Our challenge is to be aware of water safety, be alert when out in the many waterways around our nation, and be aware of where our children are at all times.
