New pool signs to help prevent drownings
Instead of celebrating April Fool’s Day, Fort Worth kicked off pool season with “April Pools Day.”
The nationwide safety initiative brings awareness to pool safety, and Fort Worth firefighters put up some of its 1,800 new pool safety signs Friday.
The drowning prevention signs, a collaboration between the Fort Worth Fire Department, Cook Children’s Medical Center and Fort Worth Firefighter Charities, will be posted at all Fort Worth public and community pool areas.
The signs stress: “Don’t count on others to watch your child,” “Stay off your cellphones” and “Drownings can happen with many people around” — in English and Spanish.
Let's make today a drowning free Sunday....#notonmywatch @CookChildrens @FortWorthFire @FWfirefighters @fortworthpd pic.twitter.com/44GRlzndNJ
— FWFF Charities (@FWFFcharities) April 3, 2016
Texas has the most child pool drownings nationwide, says Cook Children’s Medical Center. The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services recorded 75 drownings in 2015. Five were in Tarrant County.
Adding signs with pertinent and myth-busting information — “Kids don’t splash or scream when they drown” — will help educate and build more vigilance at the pool.
This story was originally published April 5, 2016 at 6:05 PM with the headline "New pool signs to help prevent drownings."