Florida parents take steps to prevent drowning deaths

CAPE CORAL, Fla. — May is National Water Safety Month and parents are taking steps to prevent drowning deaths in Florida.

Bret Croft’s two-year-old son practices survival through Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) for 10 minutes a day.

“What we call it is a sequence, swim-float swim,” Instructor Judy Fernandez said. “So in the event, God forbid, he were to fall in, he would know how to save himself and hopefully get himself out.”

His lessons with Fernandez help him learn what to do in an emergency. Croft said it brings him peace of mind.

“It’s not something like he sees the water and he’s terrified of it,” he said. “When he takes these classes he looks forward to coming here.”

More than 30 kids have already drowned and died in Florida this year, according to the Florida Department of Children and Families. That includes two-year-old Elliot Williams, who died earlier this month after falling into his family’s pool.

Croft said he’s doing everything he can to keep his son safe and alive. He and his wife became CPR certified and they also put up special barriers around their own pool. 

“We have an alarm system so if he was to figure out how to open the sliding glass door it would alert us. He’s my whole world,” Croft said. “So I would hate for something to happen just because I didn’t think that he needed to be safe.”

Fernandez said the classes are a great start, but it takes more. As more people add pools to their homes she hopes parents will keep watching their kids to prevent more tragedies.

“It’s never a replacement for any of the other layers of protection,” she said of her classes. This is just an added layer of protection.”

The post Florida parents take steps to prevent drowning deaths appeared first on NBC2 News.

NBC2 (WBBH-TV)