If you have been injured in a swimming pool accident incident cause by the negligence of a house owner, call us our Riverside swimming pool accident lawyers now at 951-530-3711 to set up your free consultation.
During your Free Consultation, we will inform you of your rights and determine if your case qualifies you for compensation for your injuries.
Riverside Swimming Pool Resources
How to Prevent Swimming Pool Accidents in Riverside
For most of the year, residents enjoy poolside parties and gatherings in Riverside. But with the luxury of enjoying a swimming pool comes the danger of these premises liability cases.
Proactive safety measures can make your pool experience a fun and safe time. However, not all pool owners share the same sense of importance concerning pool safety.
Parents can experience emotional pain and suffering when a pool accident occurs. Children are particularly vulnerable, but people of all ages can suffer due to pool incidents. Swimming pool accidents generally fall under the umbrella of premises liability cases, resulting in serious injuries and fatalities for all ages.
This is why our attorneys have provided the tips below to help you and your loved ones spot the warning signs and how you can prevent a swimming pool accident:
- Install a safety fence around your pool. In most cases, it is required by law.
- Post safety signs. This is required for all public pools in California. This is optional for private pools but is strongly encouraged.
- Install adequate lighting if the pool will be used at night or in dimly lit situations
- Keep a list of emergency contact information near your pool. This list should include 911, your local police station, and any other emergency services you deem appropriate.
- Always have a trained, experienced lifeguard on duty. It is important to have someone near the pool who knows CPR and is CPR certified in case someone drowns or passes out.
- Know the limit of how many people can be in your pool at once.
- Keep nearby pool pavement as dry as possible. Display wet floor signs if deemed necessary. It is better to be proactively safe than to have someone slip and fall and injure themselves on your premises.
What Makes Southern California Swimming Pools So Dangerous?
Owning property with a pool is a major responsibility, and if an injury occurs, a parent or guardian can file a claim.
Pools can pose a significant threat to safety whether they are located at a hotel, school, water park, or private home.
Swimming pools mainly present serious dangers for young children who are inexperienced swimmers.
Toddlers are especially at risk of wandering away, slipping into the pool, and drowning without a sound.
Children, even those who are intermediate or advanced swimmers, should be carefully supervised when they are in a pool.
It takes a few seconds for a child to slip underwater and drown. Swimming pools are silent killers, and that is what makes them so dangerous.
Riverside Swimming Pool Accident Statistics
Drowning is the third most common cause of accidental death or in legal jargon wrongful death, in the United States causing almost 8,000 deaths each year.
Experts estimate that there may be 600 near-drowning incidents for every reported drowning death.
Near-drowning refers to survival after suffocation by submersion. Those who are five or younger are most at risk of near-drowning.
Although victims survive these accidents, near drowning can result in catastrophic injury such as irreversible brain damage.
This type of injury occurs when the oxygen supply to the brain is cut off as a result of submersion. When a person is submerged, hypothermia or lower body temperature could also lead to heart arrhythmia.
How Can I Make My Swimming Pool More Safe?
Young children are the most vulnerable to swimming pool accidents, and Riverside is no exception. One can take several measures to prevent these types of tragedies from happening.
First and foremost, if you have yet to install a pool fence for your pool, do it now. Experts say it is an effective tool for preventing accidents. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a four-sided fence that separates the pool on all sides from the house and the yard reduces a child’s risk of drowning by 83 percent over a three-sided fence that runs along the property line.
You can’t avoid having wet surfaces around your pool. They come with the territory. However, you can reduce the risk of a slip-and-fall accident by using any number of different anti-slip products that are available.
There are adhesive pads and paint-on coatings that can give a better grip.
You should also make sure that your drains are updated. The drains in your swimming pool produce significant suction to keep your pool water continuously circulated and filtered.
“Pool entrapment” occurs when a swimmer’s body, hair, or clothing becomes entangled in a drain or grate.
Although it doesn’t happen often, it can become a serious or life-threatening incident.
You can significantly reduce the risk of pool entrapment by ensuring that your drain covers are in good repair and in compliance with California Law.
Vacuum release systems are also available as safety features that will automatically turn off the suction when a blockage is detected.
In the video below, the Mesa Fire and Medical Department, on 12 News Today, discuss the dangers of outdated and unsafe drain covers in pools, spas, and hot tubs.
Always have a well-stocked first-aid kit and a rescue-grade flotation device accessible and ready to use. Also have a phone nearby with the home’s address posted by the phone.
It can save a lot of time if someone has to call 911 in case of an emergency. It also helps to take CPR lessons. It’s a skill that can save lives in crisis situations.
Last but not the least, never underestimate a child’s curiosity when it comes to pools. It helps to have not just one safety feature, but layers of protection when it comes to keeping young children away from pools.
Pool fences, gates that lock, alarms, safety pool covers can all help. Clear pool areas of toys so that children are not attracted to the area. Still, nothing is a substitute for the watchful eye of a responsible adult.
No child should be allowed in the pool unsupervised.
What Should I Do After A Swimming Pool Accident?
For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries.
More than half of drowning victims treated in emergency departments require hospitalization or transfer for further care. These nonfatal drowning injuries can cause severe brain damage that may result in long-term disabilities such as memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning, putting victims in a permanent vegetative state.
The worse part about all of these cases is that there are causally related to the negligence of the owner and thus 100 percent preventable had the property owner taken the time to ensure the safety of others.
Contact Our Riverside Swimming Pool Accident Lawyers
If your loved one has been seriously injured or even died due to the carelessness of a pool owner, call our Riverside Swimming Pool Accident lawyers at 951-530-3711 for your free case review and consultation. If you qualify for compensation, our law firm will fight for you and make recovering from your accident as easy as possible.
With over 40 years of representing Riverside and the Inland Empire, we understand the pain and frustration you are currently going through and we want to do everything we can to help you in this time of need.
If you are looking for top-notch legal representation call us at 951-530-3711 for a free consultation.
