The Lifesaving Society is encouraging everyone to brush up on water safety and learn basic swimming skills after the group released a study suggesting recent immigrants face a higher risk of drowning than those born in Canada.
“The results of the study confirm what we have observed in communities across the country: newcomers to Canada often have different knowledge or experiences around issues of water safety," Barbara Byers, Public Education Director for the Lifesaving Society, said. “We commissioned this study to help us better understand what those differences are and how we can improve the way we educate all Canadians about water safety.”
The study, released Thursday ahead of National Drowning Prevention Week (July 17-24), found 79 per cent of new Canadians plan to spend time in or around water this summer, but 20 per cent of respondents said they can’t swim. 1,032 Canadian residents between the ages of 18 and 60 took part in the study. Of those respondents, 433 were born in Canada and 599 were not.
The Lifesaving Society also found just over one third of recent immigrants are nervous around water and half of parents who took part in the survey admitted they fear their children may drown or be injured while swimming.
Byers said immigrant children jump in water with their Canadian-born friends unaware of the potential danger.
Recent immigrants are four times more likely to drown (19 per cent) than their Canadian-born counterparts (four per cent), the study said.
A 14-year-old girl almost drowned on Wednesday night while swimming at the University of Toronto campus pool in Mississauga. She had no vital signs when she was pulled from the pool, but a lifeguard performed CPR on her until paramedics arrived and she is now in stable condition in hospital.
Last week, five men lost their lives in water-related accidents across the province. Nearly 500 people drown every year in Canada, according to the Lifesaving Society.
And four boys in and around the GTA died a few weeks
ago in water-related accidents, which has prompted the provincial
government to consider strengthening the rules for all public and
private pools.
“Without question, learning to swim is important for all Canadians,” Byers said. “However, as the population continues to change in Canada, we need to make sure that we are doing our best to make our education and water safety prevention tools available to everyone.”