KSHB 41 reporter Olivia Acree covers portions of Johnson County, Kansas. Share your story idea with Olivia.
With temperatures set to go up this week, families may flock to pools for relief. Johnson County MED-ACT is sounding the alarm over a rise in drowning-related incidents.
So far this summer, JoCo MED-ACT has responded to 11 drowning-related calls, up from a typical average of three to six by this time of year. The increase includes at least one death, according to Battalion Chief Drew Hysell.
"Many neighborhood pools don't have lifeguards, but they all have lifeguards," said Hysell. "They have parents, they have family members, grandma, grandpa, babysitters that all, if we're paying attention, can all be that lifeguard. So I think it's upon the public to be prepared to be able to step in and be their lifeguard and be their first responder."
Most incidents involve young children and occur at neighborhood pools with no lifeguards. Hysell emphasized that drownings often happen silently and in seconds, so parents need to constantly pay attention.
“When I get on scene, we hear the same thing. 'It happened so fast I didn't even see what happened.' And unfortunately, that bad thing did happen,” Hysell said.
To help prevent future tragedies, emergency responders urge families to take proactive measures such as learning CPR, minimizing distractions, and keeping a constant eye on children in and around water.
“They've not only gone up, but they've, you know, they've spiked," Hysell said. "And that really does concern us, because while that's a statistic, those are lives and those are families that are affected by that increase. And so our pool emergency calls have seen almost 100% increase in drownings, or near drownings year to date, which is very concerning."
If a drowning incident occurs, Hysell advises calling 911 immediately, even if the person appears fine. Delayed drowning can still happen, so it's important the person get checked out.
