Sunday, April 17, 2011

Scenic Sunday/Save the World: Save the children from drowning

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The photo shows the Nanyang Technological University's oval, and on the right the swimming pool. It was here, I trained for my 10 km Marathon running. My friend L. trained with me at 6 am in the morning, we added 800 metres per day. Later, we did our circuit of running round the university campus. The day, we completed our 10 km, we High 5ed.

This university in Singapore was part of my life for 16 years. The pool was an appealing place in the tropical island. Kids and parents flock to the pool. Sometimes without care givers. We knew it was a disaster waiting to happen. There were rules in the pool, but not everyone obeys.

This email came today:

Dear parents from small children,

this afternoon at around 5.45pm an approximately 3 year old boy almost drowned in the kid’s pool in the midst of dozens of other kids and parents hadn’t he been rescued by a brave and attentive young man. Actually the guy who saved the boy seemed to be a student who was just talking to a friend next to the pool.

We parents who only realized this event when the rescuer jumped into the water with his clothes on (cell phone and wallet probably inside his pockets) to save the boy, were totally shocked especially as we could have never imagined that something like this could happen at a time where the pool was full of people.

Please, for the safety and life of our children:
notice that even though our child can safely stand up by him-/herself in case he/she falls inside the pool, there are moments where the child apparently can loose orientation and is not able to stand up!
instruct your maid or whoever accompanies your child to the pool to PERMANENTLY watch the child especially when nobody is with him/her inside the pool. I noticed that this boy today nicely played by himself for a long time and we would have never expected that out of a sudden he would loose his orientation and couldn’t stand up by himself alone. When that event happened the maid apparently wasn’t watching him and the pool was filled with ‘noise’, so most people probably thought the boy is just playing. I myself realized that one gets easily distracted on such a day by for instance talking to other parents and the same case could have happened to all of us and could have lead to a fatal accident.

Thanks again to the great savior who has prevented a tragedy!

Robert

Thanks for a good reminding. My four year old boy had a cramp on his foot after a long swimming and play this afternoon. We just need to watch the kids all the time when they are near water, and need to remind helpers accordingly.

In New Zealand we have Mark teaching children to swim at Trikids.

6 comments:

Ginny Hartzler said...

Wow, this is a really good reminder with hot weather coming!! Kids need us to never take our eyes off them in water. A baby or toddler can DROWN in a scrub bucket!!

Ensurai said...

Yes...I live quite near the beach and many tragedies have had happened especially at Taman Selera (Trans: Tasty Garden or Park) Now the local council has put up lots of groyns etc...one 19 year old drowned there not long ago...

Reader Wil said...

Drowning is horrible! Thank God this young man saved the toddler's life!
Thanks for your visit and comment !My holiday was great!

Kim, USA said...

Hi Ann your post reminded me of a Filipina friend whom I meet just two weeks ago and shared to me her devastating experienced with her 12 year old son. She said 3 years ago her son died inside the gym of his school. It's the beginning of school days and it's the first day of his swimming course, he drowned and after 3 days died in the hospital. Until now she said she can't passed the school nor set foot on the school ground she just shakes and her knee just gave way on her. That's why they enrolled her second son to another school because of that.
I felt her loss she was teary eyed and trembling I try not to cry too but only listened her woes.
It's kind of sad that it happened to a place that we parents thought it's safe. Right now the case is going on since the school never helped them for the funeral and all the expensed. It's very sad!!!

Kim, USA said...

Hi Ann, I appreciate your response. I am going to sent her the website of your book. And yes they do change their mind quick, but as a good parent/s we are here to support and guide them, as always. I think the word "enough" is not in the vocabulary of any parent/s ^_^

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

I was born in Sibu which was 90 miles from the sea. We were sea-crazy. Sometimes, teachers take us to the beach at Kuching or Mukah, and the kids get crazy, and some drown. The poor teacher gets blamed.

Remember that, Sarawakiana?