The Public Health authorities issued an alert after the various drownings that occurred in Santiago de Cuba.
The victims were, above all, children and adolescents in the current summer stage. The main causes? Lack of perception of risk, carelessness and negligence of parents and relatives, in general.
The Chief of Operations and Relief / Aquatic Safety of the Red Cross in that province, Aris Arias Batalla, referred to the issue. “Several incidents occurred in July, many of them resolved by quick action by the Lifeguards. Others were fatal,” he revealed to the local newspaper. Sierra Maestra.
The expert also specified that most of the cases that ended in tragedy were drowning by submersion. Without determining the exact number of events of this type, Arias Batalla did assure that since the beginning of the summer there has been a notable increase in drowning deaths.
High risk in pools and ravines
The authority clarifies that in rural areas it is very dangerous to bathe because there is no lifeguard presence. “It is an enormous risk to use pools, ravines and rivers, especially due to the strong currents that may occur.”
Precisely, the highest incidence of deaths has been in rural locations, specifically in areas surrounding their homes or communities. The specialist urged families to take care of children and young people, now more in summer.
“We can have fun, enjoy ourselves and bathe, but be safe, be careful, there is danger in trust, life is priceless and it can be lost in seconds.”
The areas where fatal events have occurred are not certified as bathing areas, which is why safety depends exclusively on vacationers. Arias Batalla also warned about young people.
“They are part of a vulnerable group, sometimes they move away from the shore in truck beds used as rafts. Some jump in without knowing how to swim, and that is where the danger comes.”
Just three days ago it was reported that two adolescents drowned in a pool of the “El Saltadero” river in Palma Soriano. The same thing happened on a Santiago beach last April where three fatalities resulted.
