JWB and Community Partners Host a Press Conference to Kickoff Water Safety Month
May 02, 2024
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To kick off National Water Safety Month, St. Petersburg Fire Rescue in collaboration with JWB, Suncoast Safe Kids Coalition led by Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, and St. Petersburg Parks & Recreation hosted a press conference on May 1st, 2024, to raise awareness of water safety and drowning prevention.
Local experts discussed how easily these tragedies can happen, the dangerous effects of a water submersion, the importance of knowing CPR, and resources on how to prevent these incidents from occurring.
In addition, SPFR Paramedics and City of St. Pete Lifeguard provided a demonstration responding to a pediatric drowning on simulation mannequin provide by ECHO Healthcare.
JWB Chief Program Officer Karen Boggess also spoke.
Florida leads the nation in drowning fatalities for children under 5 years old. In 2023, we saw a record increase of pediatric submersions and fatal drownings locally here in Pinellas County, where a total of 37 pediatric submersions tragically led to 4 drowning fatalities.
View photos of the event on Facebook.