Putting an End to ‘Drowning Season’ : * O.C. Needs Safety Measures to Prevent Pool Accidents

Of all the warm seasons under Orange County’s sun, none brings a more grim category of statistics than the period of months that now unfold. So far this year, there already have been several deaths in swimming pool accidents, and more than a dozen youngsters have nearly succumbed in what doctors annually refer to as “the drowning season.” Dr. Ralph Rucker, a pulmonary specialist who has tracked these misfortunes, estimates that Children’s Hospital of Orange County typically treats 35 to 40 drowning or near-drowning victims a year.

These predictable accidents are largely preventable. But there is a recurring lament for this annual litany of chilling accounts from poolside. It is that Orange County still is not as close to having the safety requirement for pools it needs to have. And a bitter irony is that these accidents are occurring in the very places children ought to be most safe--in their families’ back yards and, in one instance, under the supervision of a day-care provider.

As always, the outcome for the lucky and the unlucky may differ only by a matter of moments. One 2-year-old girl rode her tricycle into her grandmother’s pool in May and was saved after a nervous 24 hours in the hospital simply because some Costa Mesa detectives happened to have been nearby recovering stolen property. An 18-month-old toddler at a home day-care center in Stanton was not so fortunate; and it was much too late by the time state officials came around to shut down the facility because it had faulty latches on the gates to the pool.

A committee of building officials and concerned citizens is continuing its debate of a model ordinance that would stand as a guidepost for Orange County’s diverse municipalities and spare them the time-consuming exercise of researching and approving a different pool safety code for each city. That’s a good idea, but if the county’s cities are to have something they can adopt that will work, it must be tough enough. And to save lives, it must be offered sooner rather than later.

While the debate continues, a few observations are in order. The best results at new pools are likely to come from a requirement that fences be put up on four sides, as Tucson, Ariz., has done with encouraging results. Merely allowing the house to serve as one side of the fence may keep out intruders and make for an aesthetically pleasing back yard, but there’s no guarantee of protection for the child living there.

There are some safety and performance questions, too, about self-closing door mechanisms and door alarms. Also, because of the number of existing pools in Orange County, a model ordinance ought to find ways to provide new levels of safety in houses where pools already exist. Finding ways to protect children without imposing unrealistic new requirements is a tough challenge.

Even when the committee proposes a model, municipalities still must enact something. Let’s not allow too many more seasons to go by. In the meantime, County Health Officer L. Rex Ehling’s sensible warnings are worth keeping in mind. He suggests vigilance by adults when children are around; the need for a barrier between the house and the swimming pool or spa; childproof latches, above the reach of children, on doors and gates; knowledge of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR); a telephone by the pool, and the maintenance of clear water.

Keep in mind, too, his larger bit of advice: “Compared to the amount of grief produced when a child drowns or is involved in a near-drowning incident, the value of these precautionary measures is incalculable. . . .”