The week that was: Shall we drown?
Posted on | September 6, 2009 | No Comments
Whether we underestimate water or overestimate ourselves, at no time do we drown more energetically than during summer holidays. The poor drown, the rich drown, and, above all, children drown. For facts, figures and tips, click here to be taken to the Centers for Disease Control.
Or read on for a special Labor Day weekend edition of drowning in the news in this, The Week that Was.
“They don’t have life vests, but the dogs do.” Wanda Jones observing her daughter and their friends float past in inner tubes on the American River with two Chihuahuas — Sacramento Bee
“It’s too early to comment at this time as to what the outcome might be.” A duty inspector with the Sussex, UK, police last week on the investigation into the 1969 drowning of Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones, Associated Press
Tuesday, amid a heat wave of 90-plus-degree days and smothering humidity, Madousou Konneh and about a half-dozen youngsters, including her 14-year-old sister, Mafata, trudged two miles to a bend in the Schuylkill near Bartram’s Garden and across the river from rail yards and tank farms of the Hess Refinery and Philadelphia Gas Works — Philadelphia Inquirer on the drowning of 9-year-old Maudouso Konneh after the closure of 46 city-run pools
The 2 1/2 -year-old German hunting terrier went into the lake to fetch a ball but got caught in some vegetation. Vasily Fedorouk, 59, jumped into the lake, freed the family pet but wound up getting entangled himself — Chicago Tribune
The best thing to do in a slimy situation is to float on your back, said Liz Millward of Richland, a lifeguard at Ken Serier Memorial Pool in Kennewick — Tri-City Herald, Kennewick, Washington
There will always be those in Northeastern Pennsylvania who will recall more vividly than those elsewhere the pain, anger and resentment felt after the tragic drowning death of Mary Jo Kopechne, a Larksville native who died in the infamous Chappaquiddick car crash –– editorial praising Ted Kennedy, The Times Leader, Wilkes–Barre, Pennsylvania
Park service officials said Joshua died from carbon monoxide asphyxiation, with drowning being a contributing factor — Las Vegas Review Journal on the death of a boy on Lake Mead who was floating on a raft near the exhaust pipe of the family houseboat
Contestants and crew rushed to try to save him but could not find him in the murky waters of the lake in Bangkok, the Thai capital, where the show was being filmed –– Los Angeles Times report on a reality show contestant who drowned wearing a 15-lb backpack during a challenge swim
“They called me up and said, ‘Can you get the cow out of pool?'” Johnstown Pennsylvania scuba diving enthsiast Tom Menna — Pittsburgh Post Gazette
A swimming pool vent sucks a man down just as an electrically charged metal barrier falls apart and plunges into the water — review of “The Final Destination,” Vancover Sun
While these are terrible, do we shut down boating and fishing on the Susquehanna to avoid the frequent accidents that occur on the river? — letter to the editor on the closure of Susie’s Hole, a favorite swimming spot — Intelligence Journal Lancaster New Era
A story on Page B3 Thursday incorrectly said Matthew Arreguin was intoxicated when he drowned in Lake Mendocino. Although he had been drinking, Arrequin’s blood-alcohol level was below the legal limit for driving — The Santa Rosa Press Democrat
Coroner David Crerar says Riverton man Myles Ashley Pierce, a diver, died by drowning after he slipped from his surfboard into the sea because of arrhythmia lethargy, or irregular and slowed heartbeat, caused either by cannabis consumption or as a side-effect of diabetes — Southland Times, Invercargill, New Zealand
Bakersfield Fire Chief Ron Fraze noted floatation devices, such as the floaties slipped over children’s arms, “just don’t work.” Swimming lessons are a better safety device, he said — Bakersfield Californian
This post has been updated. The art has been changed.
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