Research
911吃瓜 study reveals alcohol significantly reduces chance of being rescued from drowning
As families get ready for outdoor summer adventures, an 911吃瓜 study has found that alcohol significantly reduces the chance of youths being rescued from drowning.
The findings indicate that teenagers are nearly eight times more likely than infants to drown without any rescue attempt, while the presence of alcohol quadruples the chance of no rescue attempt.
Vienna Lam, a recent PhD graduate in the School of Criminology, and Centre for Forensic Research, analyzed 11 years of forensic data relating to drowning deaths among those aged 18 and under across Canada.
The aim was to understand why attempted rescues were made in some cases, but not others, with a view to informing policy makers and the wider public.
鈥淲hen people drown it鈥檚 not like in films 鈥� there鈥檚 no splashing around or loud noises. It鈥檚 almost a silent killer,鈥� says Lam.
鈥淲e have water all around us in B.C. with beautiful coastlines, lakes and amazing rivers. But if you are not aware of the dangers, or do not have appropriate supervision, then these environments can be incredibly dangerous.鈥�
The study, published in , analyzed 638 paediatric drowning deaths. Key findings include:
- Teenagers (15-18 years) made up the largest share of deaths (33.5%), followed by toddlers (2-4 years), children (5-11 years), pre-teens (12-14 years) and infants (birth to 23 months).
- 466 of the deceased were male (73%). Of those deaths, a rescue attempt was carried out in 73.4% of cases.
- Although the number of female deaths was smaller (172), a rescue attempt was carried out in 84.7% of cases.
- Open water environments pose the highest risk, with ocean drownings nearly eight times more likely to result in no rescue attempt than other environments.
- Incidents in rural locations are twice as likely to not result in a rescue attempt.
- With infants, there was an attempted rescue 95.9% of the time.
- Teenagers are 7.8 times less likely to be rescued than infants.
- The presence of alcohol quadrupled the risk of the individual not being rescued.
鈥淲hen there's alcohol present, it greatly increases the risk of there not being a rescue attempt, even if the person in trouble is not drinking,鈥� says Lam.
鈥淭his could be because drinking is often a social activity, and their peers who would normally be considered capable guardians were actually impaired.
鈥淚t was shocking to see how often alcohol involvement was identified as a contributing factor in the death of the person 鈥� even children, which is often associated with the guardian being inebriated.
鈥淭hese results really highlight the importance of parents avoiding impairment and staying vigilant when their child is in water.鈥�
Of the preteens who died, nearly half (46.5%) drowned while in the company of other minors, but no adults.
鈥淲hen it comes to pre-teens, it seems there鈥檚 an assumption from parents that children in this age range will supervise each other,鈥� says Lam.
鈥淏ut what we find is that pre-teens are actually really poor guardians. They often don鈥檛 have the swimming ability or decision-making to know when and how to intervene safely.鈥�
The findings come a month after the Vancouver Park Board reversed its decision to remove lifeguards from four of the city鈥檚 beaches.
Lam says the study highlights the vital importance of having trained lifeguards in busy stretches of water.
鈥淭here鈥檚 an underlying assumption that if there鈥檚 lots of people around, someone will help you if you get into difficulty in the water, but we know with the bystander effect that that is not the case,鈥� she says.
鈥淚t's absolutely essential to have lifeguards on our popular beaches, especially given how many tourists visit these spaces.
鈥淏ut where that鈥檚 not possible, this study highlights just how important the role of the guardian is, whether that鈥檚 a parent, family member, or friend.
鈥淕uardians need to be confident swimmers. They need to be aware of the dangers specific to their given location.
鈥淚t鈥檚 also vital that authorities introduce signs and infographics that inform people of the dangers present, irrespective of the language they speak.鈥�