Tragedy strikes when little kids and water coincides. Sometimes it is at the beach - sometimes in a river - but all too often in the apparent safety of our treasured back yard swimming pools.
A usual, the finger pointing tries to evade blame. There are ample rules in place and if they were observed death by drowning would be rare.
It is necessary to get council approval to build a swimming pool - and it takes the consent of Sydney Water to fill it. There are regulations governing fences and gates - and all pools must have a resuscitation poster on display.
So - why is there a problem ?
Councils are lax in inspecting fencing and gates. An annual inspection would cost them resources - and they fear the backlash from angry pool owners who may resent an inspection as an intrusion.
If the state government is serious about pool safety it should legislate to require councils to inspect all pools annually - and if necessary - charge a fee to cover that cost. This is the only way that fences will be adequate and gates fitted with self closing devices and child proof locks.
Ratepayers will certainly moan about an inspection fee, but after all a pool is a measure of wealth and what price can be put on the life of a child.
Unfortunately inspections and a tightened law will not stop all drownings. The biggest user of pools are kids - and older kids have a habit of quick dashes back to the house for cold drinks - a visit to the toilet - or pool toys.
Older kids resent the child proof locks on pool gates - and in many cases prop the gate open to make for quick passage. This opens the opportunity for younger - non swimmers - or the kids next door - to access the pool.
The biggest safety device that can prevent drownings is parent supervision of all children using swimming pools - but unfortunately that is the one thing that can not be guaranteed by legislation !
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