The Drowning Coalition of Arizona

Arizona is notorious for warm temperatures that allow residents and guests to utilize swimming pools year round. With the abundance of swimming pools in Arizona, drownings are not uncommon. Too often, we turn on the nightly news to reports of someone, especially children, drowning. There is a resource that parents and community members can use to help reduce the occurrence of drownings in Arizona.

The Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona (DPCA) is a “community based organization comprised of parents, health and safety professional and business leaders that exists to provide a forum to prevent drowning through the promotion of education, legislative action and enhanced product safety”.

The DPCA believes that drowning can be prevented by following these tips: block, watch, learn and rescue.

  • Block – using the proper pool barriers mandated by the state of Arizona.
  • Watch - providing constant supervision over others near bodies of water. According to the DPCA, “most drowning victims are missing for less than five minutes before their absence is noted.”
  • Learn – knowing life saving techniques such as CPR, especially if you are a caregiver for a child. Swimming lessons are also important for children and help reduce, but not completely eliminated, the risk of drowning for children and adults.
  • Rescue steps – understanding the right steps such as calling for help and calling 911.

The board members of DPCA have diverse backgrounds tying them to water safety and drowning prevention. For some of the board members, it is part of their job description since they work at fire departments and hospitals. For other members, the connection to water safety is a more personal one such as having a family member who drowned. The remainder of the board members consist of swim instructors and local businesses who support water safety as part of their business or for their cause marketing. These diverse individuals and companies are able to work towards a common goal of protecting the surrounding community.

If you want to do your part to prevent drowning, make sure you educate yourself on water safety and become familiar with the safety tips and resources that DPCA provides.