With summer’s warm weather approaching, Americans are heading to the water. To prepare for the season, the American Heart Association encourages all people to learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) so that they’re ready to act quickly to prevent drowning. Following are water safety tips:

Be prepared to perform CPR. Drowning is a leading cause of fatal injuries in infants, children and adolescents. Keep a constant watch over infants and children who are swimming. Drowning can occur in minutes, even in shallow water. No child is “drown proof” and the ability to swim does not prevent drowning. The drowning child often sinks quietly without screaming for help or thrashing in the water. Put life vests on your children. Children should wear life vests when swimming in natural bodies of water such as lakes and rivers. Children can easily be swept away by river currents and are very difficult to spot if they become submerged in lakes. To find a CPR training center near you, call the American Heart Association at 1-877-AHA-4CPR. When calling your local training center for course information, specify that you would like to take a Heartsaver CPR course that will include the child and infant module.

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