Management for the seaside resorts in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, the popular destination for scuba divers, has advised visitors to stay out of the water following five shark attacks in the past week.  The attacks left one woman dead and four others seriously injured.  Egypt’s tourism ministry closed beaches after a 70-year old German woman was killed while snorkeling, and they are to remain closed until the white tip shark assumed responsible for the attacks is captured or killed. 

The Chamber of Diving and Watersports has asked its members to “stop any snorkeling activities happening from any boats or shore,” and travel companies in the area have suspended all water-based excursions.  According to the UK Foreign Office website, “Attacks by oceanic white tip sharks are extremely rare, and shark attacks of any kind are very unusual in the Red Sea.” Officials are unsure about what triggered these attacks.  Hesham Gabr, head of the Chamber of Diving and Watersports, stated that the attacks were probably triggered by an activity, such as illegal fishing or feeding in the area.  The chamber has invited four U.S. shark experts to “assess and advise on the best course of action” following the attacks.

Volunteer dive expeditions have been organized in an effort to find the white tip shark responsible for the attacks.  Two sharks were caught and killed near the South Sinai National Park on the Sharm el-Sheikh coast on Friday, but they did not match pictures taken by someone diving with one of the injured snorkelers.  In the meantime, many areas in Sharm el- Sheikh will be open for experienced divers with at least 50 logged dives.

Photo by sharkbait.

Every year more than 4,000 Americans drown in lakes, rivers and oceans, including hundreds in international waters, primarily in resort areas such as Mexico and the Caribbean. 

Most of us have never encountered a drowning swimmer, and based on fictional portrayals we have a very inaccurate impression of how a drowning swimmer behaves. Instead of flailing about in the water screaming for help, the reality is that most swimmers in deep trouble remain quiet, move very little, and sink without being noticed even by people in close proximity.

Mario Vittone, a writer on maritime safety, tells of a boat captain who spotted a potentially fatal incident from fifty feet away. The captain jumped off his boat and sprinted past astonished parents to save their nine-year old daughter, who had been quietly drowning not ten feet behind her father.  Unfortunately, the Centers for Disease Control report that many of the incidents of children drowning occurred while the children were being watched by both parents.

So instead of watching in horror, we all need to learn to recognize the warning signs so we can act quickly to save a life. Lifeguards are trained to notice the “Instinctive Drowning Response”, a term coined by Dr.  Francesco Pia, a water safety expert.  Dr. Pia describes behaviors commonly used to avoid suffocating in water: Victims don’t splash much, they don’t wave, and they don’t yell or call out.  Here are the important features of the Instinctive Drowning Response:

1. In most cases, drowning victims are incapable of calling out for help because the human body is wired to give priority to breathing and not speech.
2. Drowning people’s mouths are not above the water long enough to enable them to exhale, draw a breath and then call out.  They usually have just enough time to exhale and then rapidly inhale before their mouths go back under the water.
3. A drowning victim’s natural instinct is to push arms outward and downward, not up as in a flailing motion, in order to lift the body out of the water.
4. Waving arms is a voluntary movement.  Drowning victims are incapable of performing voluntary movements such as waving for help, grabbing rescue equipment, or moving towards a rescuer.
5. Drowning victims remain upright in the water, do not kick, and will struggle on the surface for an average of 60 seconds before going under for good.

Vittone also lists a number of signs that might help us recognize a drowning victim:  glassy or closed eyes, a head that is tilted back , eyes and face covered with hair, mouths at or slightly below water level, ineffective swimming motions, hyperventilating or gasping, a vertical body and little to no use of legs.  He adds that parents should recognize that when a child who usually makes noise playing in the water becomes quiet, there is usually a problem, even if the child can be seen with its head above the water.

Silence in the water is not golden….. it’s almost a sure sign that a swimmer is lagging and in very dangerous waters. Know the signs and act fast to save a life.

Photo by knezovjb.

Last August, we blogged about the increase in jellyfish encounters around the world – especially citing abundant reports from Spain and the surrounding Mediterranean region.  This issue has resurfaced (pun intended!) one year later as reports rolled in this week that the number of swimmers on Spain’s Costa Blanca reporting jellyfish stings has leaped from a typical five to nearly 400 per day.

Marine scientists do not expect these numbers to drop soon or the trend to reverse. Fishing boats are working to haul large masses of the creatures away from swimmers, and the Spanish government is taking steps to educate beach goers to the risk of stings and the art of post-sting care. But as long as water temperatures continue to warm and excessive numbers of natural jellyfish predators are pulled from the waters, there is no sure way to stem the wave of stinging blobs .

Jellyfish can pop up anywhere so whether you’re at the Jersey Shore or the Costa Blanca, be aware of who is sharing the ocean with you.

Photo by Marie Axelsson.

Now that Bill has passed (the storm, not health care reform), we should remind ourselves of the dangers of ocean swimming.  Just this weekend in Acadia National Park in Maine, onlookers watching the huge crashing waves were overwhelmed by them.  Three people were swept into the ocean, and, tragically, one of them died.  Many others were injured.

The ocean is the perfect spot to cool off from the heat of the summer. If you’re traveling in the northern hemisphere at this time of year, chances are you’ll encounter and explore some tempting beach or bay.  These fun distractions are a great way to spend a day as long as you exercise care.

Of course, drowning is the biggest danger… In Texas this year alone, 30 children swimming in the surf died from drowning in June-a record month for the state.

Ocean swimmers have to contend with heavy surf, rip currents, and marine pests (like jellyfish).  This time of year, the dangers of ocean swimming are exacerbated by the arrival of hurricanes and tropical storms.   Do you know the international language of beach safety flags? They can be extremely helpful for you to understand surf conditions, especially if you are in a country where you don’t speak the language. The International Life Saving Federation helped create them, and has published background information and pictures here (scroll down for images). If you do get caught in a rip current, remember to swim parallel to shore until you’ve escaped the pull and then swim in to shore. The national weather service offers additional rip current safety tips on their website.  Be aware of lingering turbulence; after a hurricane or storm, the ocean needs time to settle back down. Don’t assume that the water is safe just because the storm has moved through the area.

And don’t leave your common sense on the beach house veranda. Experts agree that constant supervision is the best way to keep children safe while swimming, even for strong swimmers or in shallow water. For all swimmers, it’s important to know the depth of the water, fellow swimmers’ abilities, and that lifeguards are present. Avoid dangerous spots such as sharp reefs and sudden drop-offs. Plenty of adult supervision is key. Of course, grown-ups who have been drinking may have lost their adult judgment. Keep those beach parties under control to keep the lifeguards out of the water.  Make the most out of the rest of the summer: swim safely and enjoy yourself.

It’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining, the temps are high and you are diving into a crisp, clean pool. And as the water washes over you, so do millions of dirty microorganisms.  Not so refreshing anymore, is it?

Recently a good friend of mine was on vacation at a very nice resort in Florida. As she and her three children arrived at the pool, she overheard this exchange between a four year old and her father: “Daddy, I have to go potty.” To which dad responded, “Can’t you just go in the pool?” Needless to say, my friend and her family chose an alternate recreational activity that day.

The trouble with community pools, whether in a small neighborhood or a five star resort, is that you can’t see everything that goes on in them.  Obviously if the water in the pool looks cloudy or murky, you’d be wise to stay out.  However, the water can appear clean, but really isn’t.  Another source of a false sense of security can be the smell of chlorine – a well maintained pool should not produce a strong chlorine smell, which usually indicates that there is an underlying problem.

So, what are the risks of diving into these deceptively un-murky waters?  A whole litany of problems categorized as recreational water illnesses (RWIs) such as gastrointestinal, respiratory, ear and skin infections.   Ominously, in a recent poll conducted by the Water Quality and Health Council, 1 in 5 Americans admitted to peeing in a swimming pool. 

WebMD provides a list of things you can do to minimize your exposure to the risks of RWIs including the following:

• Ask the management how often the pool is cleaned and tested.
• Tell your kids to avoid getting pool water in their mouths.
• Listen to make sure that the filtering equipment is on.

And while you can’t control what other people do, you can choose to be a conscientious citizen of a clean pool by following these CDC  recommendations:

• Shower before you go in the pool
• Make your kids take frequent bathroom breaks
• And please, don’t swim if you are having stomach issues

Bacteria and the potential for infection are unavoidable, so we’re not recommending you get fanatical about avoiding all pools, just be aware of the risks And for everyone’s sake, don’t advise your children to pee in the pool!

We’ll cover the risks of swimming in fresh water lakes and streams, especially in developing countries, in an upcoming post.