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“Designated Child Watcher”
Corps lakes start “Designated Child Watcher” program this holiday weekend

WILMINGTON, North Carolina—Visitors to swim beaches at Falls Lake, B. Everett Jordan Lake, W. Kerr Scott Lake, John H. Kerr Lake, and Philpott Lake in North Carolina and Virginia will be given stronger encouragement to ‘watch their babies’ this summer.

“Following the tragic drowning deaths of a 10 year old girl at Falls Lake on Memorial Day weekend, and a 5 year old boy at Jordan Lake this past weekend, we want to place extra emphasis on constant, careful attention to children playing in the water,” said Water Safety Coordinator Paula Carper. “Neither of the two children who drowned was wearing a life jacket, and both died while those watching had looked away for just a few minutes.”

“Older children and adults will be given a ‘Designated Child Watcher’ card with some instructions on the back for use in emergencies. The card will be available in both Spanish and English language versions. The card holder will be asked to commit to keeping an eye on the children at all times. If that person wants to take a break, he or she should pass the card and its duties to another member of their party. We hope this will encourage folks to remember that their close attention is a vital life-saving tool.”

Carper said visitors can also make use of free loaner life jackets to help protect swimming children.

The Operations Managers at all five lakes in the Wilmington District urged every visitor to follow some basic safety rules. This year, the District’s lakes have seen not only the two deaths of young children, but also a third young person, 17, is currently in a comatose condition after slipping under water for several minutes.

Carper said “We do not want any more tragedies to occur this summer. We will continue to do all we can to help the public be safe. We encourage our visitors to join with us in our efforts for safe, joyful fun at our lakes by doing the following:”

· Watch children at all times

· Make use of available loaner life jackets to protect children in the water

· Insist that every person in a boat wear a properly fastened life jacket at all times

· Don’t mix alcohol and water sports

· Swim in designated areas only

· Swim with a buddy, never alone

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Many times we can't actually see water safety messages manifested themselves, but here's an excellent example from Hartwell Lake:

A Hartwell ranger was patrolling at Elrod Ferry Park on Labor Day, specifically talking water safety, when she saw two teenage boys walking down the shoreline with their life jackets on. She went over to talk to them. They had been out in a small john boat when it flipped over, throwing them out. During the conversation the boy's mother ran up and started hugging them. It turns out that one of the boys could not swim, but luckily he was wearing his life jacket. Why? When the family arrived at the park on Friday the mother had seen the decal message (picture below) on the gate house window about wearing your life jackets and insisted on the boys wearing their life jackets. She had MADE them put their life jackets on before they went out this particular time. Some fishermen retrieved their boat, and the two young men and everyone on the beach once again realized the importance of life jackets, (and listening to your mama).

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Atlantic Division is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The South Atlantic Division is one of eight Corps regional offices, responsible for all or part of eight southeastern states. Through its five district offices, the Division manages military construction,
water resources, and environmental programs throughout the region.

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The POC for this site:
    Rob Holland, CESAD-PA
    US Army Engineer Division, South Atlantic
    Room 9M15, 60 Forsyth St. S.W.
    Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8801
    Telephone: 404-562-5011
    robert.g.holland@usace.army.mil

Page Last Updated: 19 November 2008

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