Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Child Drowning Deaths Up Locally This Summer

pool drowning
Pixabay

In a typical year, between one and three children are lost to drowning in backyard swimming pools during a Cincinnati summer. This year, Cincinnati Children's Hospital reports nine such deaths.

"This year we've seen a significant increase in the number of drowning deaths and it has our team very concerned," said Dawne Gardner, injury prevention specialist at Cincinnati Children's, in a news release. "Because many community pools are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, families are relying more on backyard pools that don't provide lifeguard supervision. While many people think they would be able to hear if something was wrong with their child, drowning is in fact often silent and very quick."

Gardner joins Cincinnati Edition to talk about the issue and the safety precautions that families can take.

Listen to Cincinnati Edition live at noon M-F. Audio for this segment will be uploaded after 4 p.m. ET.

Never miss an episode by subscribing to our podcast: 

Michael Monks brings a broad range of experience to WVXU-FM as the host of Cincinnati Edition, Cincinnati Public Radio's weekday news and information talk show.