Eagle Ridge Pool Safety
Swimming pools are a tremendous source of fun and enjoyment for all ages but are adherently dangerous even when managed and supervised effectively. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), drowning is recognized worldwide as a leading cause of unintentional injury death that disproportionately affects children. Drowning is the leading cause of injury death among children aged 1–4 years. Among children aged less than 4 years, 50.1% of fatal incidents occurred in swimming pools.
The safety of our members and guests is the foundation of anything we do. As such - we have specific guidelines for the operation and oversight of the pools, which includes a mindset that an event of some type will occur at any point in time on any day vs. a sense of comfort that nothing has happened in the past.
Our members play a critical role in the safety and well-being of those that use the pools by exercising a few key best practices:
Do not leave children unattended while they are inside the pool area - children under the age of 14 must have an adult present to swim. Children that do not know how to swim should wear a life jacket at all times while in the water regardless of water depth.
Nobody's eyes are better than your own in recognizing your child and determining if they appear to be stressed - keeping a vigilant eye is paramount to safety in the water.
Please do not let your children exhale their breath in order to stay underwater longer. This increases the risk of a scenario called "shallow water blackout" where an individual becomes unconscious from a lack of oxygen caused by the expelling of CO2 before going underwater and thereby reducing the brain’s natural trigger to breathe. When an individual does pass out - the body's natural reaction is to take a breath - which in this case will be an intake of water into the lungs (see videos below for more detail). The time window to resuscitate someone from shallow water blackout is significantly reduced due to the lack of oxygen present from the breath holding.
No diving in water any less than 9ft deep. Diving should be done from the end wall of the deep end and not the sides as the bottom slopes upward toward the shallow end.
Please do not interact with the Life Guards while they are on duty unless it is related to a safety matter. It is vital that their pool scan process is not interrupted as a drowning can occur in seconds and most often does not involve anything to indicate an event has occurred - like the flailing of arms or screaming for help. Drowning often occurs where there are a number of people within sight and reach - including under the guard chair. The Life Guards have been instructed not to take their eyes off the water and to politely ask that you see them when they are off duty if it is not a safety matter.
Please review the Eagle Ridge Emergency Action Plan (EAP) so that you can assist in the case of an emergency if requested by our Life Guard Team.
The videos below are helpful in understanding the associated challenges and risks with any pool. If we all do our part - we can significantly reduce the likely hood of an event occurring. Thank you for doing your part in making Eagle Ridge a safe environment for all our members and guests!
