'Spike' Reported Of Kids Drowning In Riverside County

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — An "alarming" spike in juvenile drownings this year prompted officials on Tuesday to issue a public health warning urging families to exercise caution with youth and water. So far in 2018, four kids have lost their lives due to drowning. That's the same amount from all of 2017.

Tragedy struck in Riverside County when one child drowned after riding a toy car into a backyard pool. Again when a toddler was found floating in the water by a parent who thought their child was inside the house. Another child drowned in a backyard pool while family members were barbecuing out front. Yet another child, a 9-year-old girl, drowned after falling into the water while trying to get a tennis ball. She wasn't found until 15 minutes later and it was too late.

The Riverside University Health System-Public Health detailed the heartbreaking cases that have occurred so far this year. And since Tuesday is only the first day of spring, they worry that there will likely be more cases this year.

"Cases such as these demonstrate how important it is to monitor children anytime they are near any body of water, whether it is a backyard pool, an outdoor sauna or an indoor bathtub," the agency said in a news release. "One distracted moment could be all the time it takes to turn a Super Bowl party into a tragedy."

The public health department's director, Kim Saruwatari, spoke before the county supervisors on Tuesday to alert them to this tragic trend.

"The issue is particularly alarming, she said, because the four deaths are equal to the number of juvenile drownings for all of 2017," officials said in their news release. "Each event happened with adults present, and none of the 2018 incidents occurred while the child was swimming."

Saruwatari stressed that people need to be more vigilant whenever kids are near water.

The Rivco Water Safety Coalition also urges adults to always supervise children near water with their motto "pay attention, drowning prevention."

Officials also released the above video to remind the community about taking proper precautions to help protect youth.

“Drowning is 100 percent preventable," Saruwatari said.

— Patch file photo by Renee Schiavone