Shasta County Drowning Incident Data

Overview

In 2004, there were 3,308 unintentional fatal drownings in the United States, averaging nine people per day. This figure does not include the 676 fatalities, from drowning and other causes, due to boating-related incidents (CDC 2006; USCG 2006).

For every child 14 years and younger who dies from drowning in 2004, five receive emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries. More than half of these children were hospitalized or transferred to another facility for treatment (CDC 2006).

Nonfatal drownings can cause brain damage that result in long-term disabilities ranging from memory problems and learning disabilities to the permanent loss of basic functioning (i.e., permanent vegetative state).

A CDC study about self-reported swimming ability (Gilchrist et al. 2000) found that:

• Younger respondents reported greater swimming ability than older respondents;

• Self-reported ability increased with level of education (i.e., high school graduate, college graduate, etc.);

• Among racial groups, African Americans reported the most limited swimming ability; and 

• Men of all ages, races, and educational levels consistently reported greater swimming ability than women.

Groups at Risk

• Between 2000 and 2004, the fatal unintentional drowning rate for African Americans overall was 1.3 times that of whites. However, in certain age groups it was even higher. For example, the fatal unintentional drowning rate for 5-14 year old African Americans was 3.2 times higher than that for whites.

• Between 2000 and 2004, the fatal unintentional drowning rate overall for American Indians and Alaskan Natives was 1.8 times that of whites. In American Indian and Alaskan Native children 5-14 years old, it was 2.6 times higher than that of whites.

• Factors such as the physical environment (e.g., access to swimming pools) and a combination of social and cultural issues (e.g., valuing swimming skills and choosing water-related activities when making recreational choices) may contribute to the racial differences in drowning rates. If minorities participate less in water-related activities than whites, their drowning rates (per exposure) may be higher than currently reported (Branche et al. 2004

Risk Factors

• Lack of supervision and barriers (such as pool fencing). Children under age one most often drown in bathtubs, buckets, or toilets (Brenner et al. 2001). Among children ages 1 to 4 years, most drownings occur in residential swimming pools (Brenner et al. 2001). Most young children who drowned in pools were last seen in the home, had been out of sight less than five minutes, and were in the care of one or both parents at the time (Present 1987).

• Recreation in natural water settings (such as lakes, rivers, or the ocean). The percent of drownings in natural water settings increases with age. These locations represent the majority of drownings in those over 15 years of age (Gilchrist et al. 2004).

• Recreational boating. Boating carries risks for injury. In 2005, the U.S. Coast Guard received reports for 4,969 boating incidents; 3,451 participants were reported injured, and 697 died in boating incidents. Among those who drowned, 87% were not wearing life jackets. Most boating fatalities from 2005 (70%) were caused by drowning; the remainder were due to trauma, hypothermia, carbon monoxide poisoning, or other causes. Open motor boats were involved in 45% of all reported incidents, and personal watercraft were involved in another 26% (USCG 2006).

• Alcohol use. Alcohol use is involved in about 25% to 50% of adolescent and adult deaths associated with water recreation (Howland et al. 1995; Howland and Hingson 1988). Alcohol influences balance, coordination, and judgment, and its effects are heightened by sun exposure and heat (Smith and Kraus 1988). Alcohol was involved in about one-third of all reported boating fatalities.

• Seizure disorders. For persons with seizure disorders, drowning is the most common cause of unintentional injury death, with the bathtub as the site of highest drowning risk (Quan et al. 2006).