101 CDOS: Week 4: Swimming Safety Published June 11, 2008 By Compiled from staff reports 354th Fighter Wing Safety Office EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska -- An afternoon at the pool or beach is a great way to escape summer heat. Follow these tips to keep you and the young swimmers in your life safe in the water: Learn to swim. This might seem obvious, but the best way you can stay safe around water is to know how to swim. Learning to swim and learning how to be safe around water is your best defense against drowning. Use life jackets. A Coast Guard-approved life jacket is essential for safety, especially for beginning swimmers or young children. Don't substitute air-filled devices -- such as water wings or an inflatable raft -- for a life jacket. Supervise children closely. Keep an eye on your children at all times when they're near or in the water. Avoid unsupervised areas. Whenever possible, swim in an area that has a lifeguard. Don't dive into the unknown. If you're swimming in a new place, check the water depth before getting in and avoid diving. Severe neck injuries and paralysis can result from diving into water that's too shallow. Avoid alcohol. Stay sober in the water. Alcohol affects your balance and coordination and can impair your swimming skills. It may also alter your sense of judgment which might lead you to do something that you wouldn't risk otherwise. In the backyard pool If you're swimming in your pool at home, remember that there's no lifeguard around but you. Take these extra precautions for safety. Install a barrier. Make sure the pool area is fenced off from the house and the rest of the yard. This eliminates the chance that your child or a neighbor's child will accidentally fall into the water in an unsupervised area. Prepare for an emergency. Have a telephone and emergency phone numbers available near the pool. Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid. Watch for changing weather. Be prepared to head indoors if the skies look threatening stay out of the water to avoid lightning strikes. On the open water If you're venturing out to a lake, a river or the ocean keep the following in mind when you're swimming on the open water. Be in shape for what you intend to do. Don't do more than your physical condition easily allows. Cold water, currents and other conditions on the open water require more energy than does swimming in a pool. Don't swim alone. Swim with a friend. Stay within designated swimming areas. You might be tempted to swim into other areas, but unseen dangers may lie just beneath the water's surface. Don't fight the current. If you get caught in a particularly strong current, don't panic swim in a line parallel to the shore. When you feel the current relax, you can swim toward shore.