1/11/2020

On average one child dies from a portable pool-related drowning every year in Australia, while others need hospital treatment and may be left with severe brain injuries. Each year to coincide with summer, Australian consumer law and product safety regulators join forces with Royal Life Saving Society - Australia to remind parents and carers to make portable pools SAFE.

Portable pools – ranging from small blow-up or plastic paddling or kiddie pools to bigger wading pools, inflatable spas or high-sided flexible plastic pools on a frame – can be popular as a cheap alternative to below-ground pools BUT they’re just as dangerous.

It’s a timely reminder about the drowning risk associated with portable pools as the weather warms up and you perhaps consider buying a portable pool for your backyard, or as a Christmas gift.

The ‘Don’t Duck Out, Make It SAFE’, campaign aims to educate consumers of the responsibilities they take on when purchasing a portable pool, which may include putting up a safety barrier. Anyone thinking about purchasing a portable pool should take a few minutes to check out www.productsafety.gov.au/makeitsafe.

Royal Life Saving Society - Australia National Manager Research and Policy, Alison Mahony, says the Royal Life Saving National Drowning Report highlights the issue of portable pool drowning and who is most at risk. “Our statistics show there is one child fatality as a result of a portable pool drowning each year. The child is almost always under five-years-old and more likely to be male,” she said.

“We don’t want any deaths or hospitalisations due to drowning this summer. Adults following the Don’t Duck Out, Make It SAFE tips, such as keeping constant watch of kids around portable pools, can reduce the risk and potentially save lives.”

Supervise. Actively watch children within arm’s reach. Don’t leave older children in charge.

Act. Learn emergency response including CPR. It’s important to start compressions and breaths as soon as possible when a child is pulled from the water and to call triple zero (000) for help. If there are two people, one should make the phone call while the other does CPR.

Fence. In most parts of Australia, pools filled with more than 30cm of water, are legally required to have a compliant safety barrier. Check with your local council or relevant government agency.

Empty and store safely. After keeping watch all day, pour away water and store the pool where children can’t reach. Never leave it where it can refill with rain or sprinkler water.

For all media enquiries:

Please contact Royal Life Saving - Ross Woodward Media Key on 0409 420 112 or 03 9769 6488.