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Water safety - injury statistics and incidence rates
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Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 4. The following statistics are the latest available from the National Safe Kids Campaign and the National Safety Council: |
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Injury and death rates |
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- Approximately 927children ages 14 and under drowned in 1999; more than 60 percent of these children were under age 4.
- In 1998, 500 children under the age of 5 drowned.
- Approximately 15 percent of children admitted to hospitals for near-drowning die, while another 20 percent will suffer severe and permanent brain damage.
- Since 1980, approximately 230 children ages 4 and under have drowned in spas and hot tubs.
- In 1998, 17 children ages 14 and under drowned in boating-related incidents.
- In 1999, more than 170 children ages 14 and under, suffered personal watercraft injuries.
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Where and when |
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- Most infants under the age of 1 drown in bathtubs. Other drownings in this age group tend to occur in toilets and buckets. Drownings in bathtubs account for 10 percent of all childhood drownings, most often when the child is unsupervised.
- Since 1984, more than 327 children have drowned in buckets containing water or other liquids. The majority (89 percent) of the children were between the ages of 7 and 15 months.
- More than half of childhood drownings in pools occur in the child's home pool, with one-third of these drownings occurring at the homes of friends, neighbors, or relatives.
- In-ground swimming pools that do not have four-sided isolation fencing are 60 percent more likely to be involved in drownings.
- Most drownings and near-drownings occur on the weekend (40 percent) during late spring and summer (May through August).
- More fatal drownings occur in the South and West.
- More fatal drownings occur in rural areas than suburban or urban areas.
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Who |
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- The majority (more than 85 percent) of children who drown in swimming pools are between the ages of 1 to 4.
- Each year, 375 children ages 4 and under drown in swimming pools, while another 2,900 children in this age group are treated for near-drowning in hospital emergency rooms.
- Children ages 4 and under are two to three times as likely to drown than other age groups and account for 80 percent of home drownings.
- Boys are two to four times more likely to drown than girls.
- Girls are twice as likely to drown in bathtubs than boys.
- African-American children ages 5 to 9 are four-and-a-half times more likely to drown than Caucasian children.
- Non-swimming pool drownings are more common among low-income children.
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