Serious Summer Safety: Record Heat, Swimming Dangers, Lightning and More

We hear about it all the time and can even become immune to it after a while: Summer safety.

But don’t look away. It’s more important than ever to stay safe as we get into the heart of the season. Outdoor family gatherings and activities bring us closer together, but statistics show that heat, floods, lightning, boating, swimming accidents and fireworks can change lives instantly.

Pay attention to your surroundings during all that fun under the sun so you will have a summer to remember and cherish.

Let’s start with a few sobering facts:

Did you know?

• Florida is off to its warmest start to a year on record, the National Centers for Environmental Information reports. That means record heat. With extreme heat comes the possibility of extreme heat-related illnesses.
• Florida is the lightning capital of the U.S. Our state averaged 223 lightning events per square mile in 2022, meaning it had the most lightning activity.
• From 2018 to 2020 combined, Florida ranked number one in the U.S. for unintentional drowning death rate among children ages 1 to 4 and among children 0 to 9 years of age compared to other states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention national injury data.
• Among all Florida counties, Lee County ranked fifth in boating accidents last year, with 37 resulting in three fatalities. Overall, Florida led the nation in the number of recreational boating accidents and boating fatalities in 2022, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Going Outdoors: Heat, Dehydration, and Sun Safety

Extreme Florida heat has been in the news recently, taxing even the most rugged of our state’s residents. The effects of extreme heat on the body can be lethal, causing illness, dehydration, and even death.

• Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids. The sun works fast and has no mercy. Avoid drinks with caffeine or alcohol. Encourage guests and family members to drink lots of water at gatherings. Remember that ultraviolet (UV) rays bounce off sand, concrete, and water.
• Sunscreen, sunscreen, and more sunscreen – for all members of the family, especially infants and children and the elderly. Apply and reapply often. Use at least 30 SPF to protect your skin.
• Sensitive to sunburn? Wear a hat and try to stay in the shade.
• Remember: If your urine is yellow or dark yellow, you are likely dehydrated and need to drink more water.
• Wear loose-fitting, lightweight, light-colored clothing. Avoid dark colors because they absorb the sun’s rays.
• Slow down, stay indoors and avoid strenuous exercise during the hottest part of the day.
• Postpone outdoor games and activities.

Sun Protection Tips 

As temperatures begin reaching well into the 90s, remember to apply sunscreen, limit your exposure to the sun, and protect your eyes with sunglasses.

• Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher.
• Wear clothing and a wide-brimmed hat to protect as much skin as possible.
• Seek shade when possible, and remember that the sun’s ultraviolet rays are strongest between 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

READ: Protect Your Peepers from the Sun’s Harsh UV Rays

​Lightning Safety

In Southwest Florida, lightning is as common here as the daily rain. Follow these safety guidelines to reduce the risk of injury or death during a lightning event.

• Hear thunder? Move your feet! Most people are struck by lightning before it starts raining or after it stops raining. Don’t stay outside just because the rain hasn’t come down yet. As the National Weather Service advises: “When it roars, go indoors.”
  • Find a safe, enclosed shelter such as a home, office, shopping center, or hard-top vehicle with the windows rolled up.
  • Be aware. Check the weather forecast before participating in outdoor activities. If the forecast calls for thunderstorms, postpone your event or make sure adequate safe shelter is readily available.

• Caught in the open? Leave elevated areas such as hills, mountain ridges, or peaks.
  • Never lie flat on the ground. Crouch down in a ball-like position with your head tucked and hands over your ears so that you are down low with minimal contact with the ground.
  • Never shelter under an isolated tree.
  • Immediately get out of and away from ponds, lakes, and other bodies of water.
  • Stay away from objects that conduct electricity (barbed wire fences, power lines, etc.).

Water Safety is Everyone’s Responsibility

Drowning is 100 percent preventable! And drowning happens quickly and quietly. Unless rescued, a drowning person will last only 20 to 60 seconds before submerging, reports the Red Cross.

Rule No. 1: Never swim alone!

Be a “water watcher” even if your children aren’t at the pool. That’s because children less than a year old are more likely to drown at home in the bathroom or a bucket. The safety experts with Lee Health’s Child Advocacy Department at Golisano’s Children’s Hospital share these life-saving tips:

• Watch kids when they are in or around water without being distracted. Keep young children within arm’s reach of an adult. Make sure older children swim with a partner.
• Close toilet lids and use toilet seat locks to prevent drowning. Keep doors to bathrooms and laundry rooms closed.
• Teach children how to swim. Every child is different, so enroll children in swim lessons when they are ready. Consider their age, development, and how often they are around water.
• Make sure kids know how to swim and learn these five water survival skills:

1. Step or jump into water over their head and return to the surface.
2. Float or tread water for one minute.
3. Turn around in a full circle and find an exit.
4. Swim 25 yards to exit the water.
5. Exit the water. If in a pool, be able to exit without using the ladder. Install fences around home pools.

• A pool fence should surround all sides of the pool and be at least 4 feet tall with self-closing and self-latching gates.
• Empty kids’ pools after each use. Store them upside down so they don’t collect water.
• Know what to do in an emergency. Learning CPR and basic water rescue skills may help you save a child’s life.

Rip Currents

Lifeguards save thousands of people every year from these dangerous currents. In fact, the National Weather Service reports that rip currents account for more than 80 percent of rescues performed by surf beach lifeguards. These channelized currents of water flow away from the shore and can quickly pull swimmers away quickly.

• Always swim in an area protected by lifeguards.
• Consult lifeguards before entering the water.
• Assume that rip currents are always present at surf beaches. 
• Learn to swim in the surf and make sure your children can swim in the surf. Pool swimming is not the same as swimming at a surf beach.
• Learn to identify rip currents and take the time to evaluate the water before you enter the water.

What if you're caught in a rip current?

• Relax, rip currents don't pull you under.
• Don’t swim against the current. You may be able to escape by swimming out of the current in a direction following the shoreline or toward breaking waves, then at an angle toward the beach.
• You may be able to escape by floating or treading water if the current circulates back toward shore.
• If you feel you will be unable to reach shore, draw attention to yourself. If you need help, yell and wave for assistance.

Boating Safety

Your children should always wear a life jacket when playing water sports and while on any type of watercraft, around open bodies of water, and even while on docks. Make sure the life jackets are approved by the U. S. Coast Guard. The life jacket should have a snug fit, which you can check by having your child signal a “touchdown” with upraised arms. If the preserver bumps their chin, tighten up the straps. If it’s still too loose, the jacket is too large, and you should go down a size.

Other helpful boating safety tips:

• Explain some basic rules and have everyone follow them. Make sure the children understand the rules, such as keeping their hands and feet inside the boat and no running on it.
• Enroll older kids in a boating safety course. Better yet, enroll with them.
• Get a free safety check every year from the U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary for U. S. Power Squadrons. Find a location.
• Just like on the road, have a designated driver for the boat.
• In many states, no one under 14 years of age may operate any personal watercraft at any time, even if such a person possesses a Boating Safety Education ID Card.
• Infants and young kids are at a higher risk for hypothermia, so if you are taking a baby on a boat, take a few extra precautions to keep your baby warm. If the children seem cold or are shivering, wrap them tightly in a dry blanket or towel.

The Child Advocacy Department provides services at the Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, the Golisano Nicklaus Children’s Health Center in Collier County, and the Hendry, Glades and Charlotte counties. In Lee County, call 239-343-6199. In Collier County, call 239-254-9560. In Hendry, Glades and Charlotte counties, call either number.