Drowning incidents on the rise: WHO

The Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) has sounded caution to all parents out there to be more watchful of their children against drowning incidents especially whenever there is adverse climatic conditions and ensuing flash floods.

In its latest statistical report, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says that globally, there are an estimated 236,000 annual drowning death cases worldwide making the third leading cause of unintentional injury death. It accounts for 7 per cent of all injury-related deaths. And in 2019, injuries accounted for almost 8 per cent of total global mortality.

According to the WHO data issued on World Drowning Day, such deaths in Oman reached 211 or 1.42 per cent of total deaths and the age adjusted death rate is 4.91 per 100,000 of population ranking Oman to be number 26 in the world as more than 500 drowning incidents were reported in Oman in 2021, a recent statistics has revealed.

Speaking to the Observer, a senior official from the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) said that the water rescue teams dealt with 521 calls of drowning accidents in 2021.

“Succeeding water levels during the rains and natural water bodies can be a dangerous spot if proper care and attention are not paid by elders when children play around them,” he said.

He said children, males and individuals with increased access to water are most at risk of drowning and global estimates might have significantly underestimated the actual public health problem related to drowning.

“Carelessness during rains, being inattentive to warning signs at spots of water tourism, near lakes, ponds, swimming pools or sea and kids being unattended at the pools are major reasons behind the incidences of drowning cases in the country,” the official added.

“So, swimming requires caution and should not be carried out in undesignated sites. In most cases, the victims are children as a result of negligence and lack of supervision by parents. Many of them either attempted to cross the swamps of water or were playing in the swimming pools in farms and rest houses without knowing the danger involved resulting in loss of many human lives," he said.

The CDAA statistics show an average of 400 drowning incidents were reported in the past mostly during rains and indicates that major reasons behind drowning deaths to be crossing running wadis, swimming in undesignated areas such as dams, water channels and water-logged areas, leaving children unattended near water surfaces, and non-abidance of safety instructions.

"By law, crossing the wadis (valleys) and low-lying areas despite the warning is a punishable offence and can have serious repercussions," he added.

Parents have been urged to be watchful of their children, especially below 12 years of age, just as they need to be vigilant about their children crossing wadis or playing in water ponds when it's raining and flash floods are formed as many drowning incidents involving children were reported from many wilayats.

The global burden and death from drowning are found in all economies and regions, however low and middle income countries account for over 90 per cent of unintentional drowning deaths. Over half of the world's drowning occurs in the WHO Western Pacific Region and WHO South-East Asia Region; while drowning death rates are highest in the WHO Western Pacific Region and are 27–32 times higher than those seen in the United Kingdom or Germany, respectively.

Despite limited data, several studies reveal information on the cost impact of drowning.

In the United States of America, 45 per cent of drowning deaths are among the most economically active segment of the population. Coastal drowning in the United States alone accounts for US$ 273 million each year in direct and indirect costs. In Australia and Canada, the total annual cost of drowning injury is US$ 85.5 million and US$ 173 million, respectively.