A moment of silence held for 14-year-old Omar Boz of London helped kicked off a flag raising ceremony at City Hall on Monday- officially marking National Drowning Prevention Week in St. Thomas.
Boz, who tragically lost his life in a drowning incident in Port Stanley last week, was honoured by those on hand for the ceremony, including MPP Rob Flack, representatives from the city and council, St. Thomas Police, OPP and more.
The morning event was organized by the Elgin County Drowning Prevention Coalition as they look to focus community and media attention on water safety and drowning prevention efforts this week.
Each year in Ontario there are an average of 164 drowning deaths, 100 hospitalizations due to non-fatal drowning and 568 emergency department visits due to non-fatal drowning.
With a hope of bringing those numbers down to zero, MaryKate Townsend, co-chair of the Elgin County Drowning Prevention Coalition provided some water safety tips to our listeners.
This includes swimming with a buddy and wearing a lifejacket if you don’t know how to swim or aren’t a strong enough swimmer for your environment.
Townsend says that one of the most vital tips to remember is to simply pay attention while around water- especially if you’re responsible for small children.
Adding that staying sober while out on the water is a must!
And while we may have statistics that give us a better understanding of the trends each year, Townsend stresses that drowning doesn’t discriminate.
As we get set for the second half of the summer, Townsend notes that it’s never to late to be educated. It could be as simple as learning what the flags means at local beaches.
Those wishing to learn more about water safety are encouraged to attend the Shaw’s Education Night taking place on Wednesday hosted by the Elgin County Drowning Prevention Coalition. It will run from 5 to 8:30 p.m. and will see a number of stakeholders in attendance including the Catfish Creek Conservation Authority, 3S-Summer Swim School, Elgin OPP, YWCA- St Thomas Elgin and more.
Be sure to visit the Elgin County Drowning Prevention Coalition Facebook page for further messaging and event details pertaining to National Drowning Prevention Week- July 21- 27.
Written by: K. Freeman
