Politics & Government
Town of Hempstead Highlights Pool Safety Tips
With the summer season in full swing, Supervisor Kate Murray wants to remind residents of some life saving advice to heed in and around the water.
Wanting to protect local residents from the drowning tragedies that have occurred in pools across Long Island, the Town of Hempstead takes water safety seriously.
Town Supervisor Kate Murray, Councilman Gary Hudes and Clerk Mark Bonilla, along with other special guests and swimmers congregated at the Blue Grass Lane Pool in Levittown Tuesday morning to talk about this important issue.
“School is over and summer has arrived,” Murray said. “Adults and kids of all ages will beat the heat by relaxing in pools, whether in the backyard or at one of our many town parks.”
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“As parents and grandparents we just must remember that as we are enjoying this beautiful summer weather, that these precious gifts that we have - we cannot take our eyes off of them for a moment because that is all it takes,” Hudes added.
After the rescue of an 11-year-old boy from a near drowning incident in a Huntington Station pool Monday, Murray emphasized the need to exercise caution and vigilance while enjoying pools in the area.
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Town of Hempstead adopted a groundbreaking law in 2008 that requires every swimming pool “installed or maintained” within the unincorporated areas of the town to have a pool alarm. This alarm detects a person entering the water - potentially saving the lives of children who fall in. Murray explained that the town law goes a step further than the state mandate, which only necessitates “homeowners to install alarms on pools built after December 2006.”
Though these alarms are a helpful tool, she also highlighted other simple solutions to prevent pool dangers, including having adult supervision, staying alert, never leaving a child alone in or around the pool area and learning CPR.
“An alarm is certainly not the sole tool, however, to preventing dangers in the pool.” Murray said. “The best and, yet maybe, the simplest solution to preventing pool dangers is alert adult supervision.”
Murray stated that pool maintenance also contributes to increased safety. Maintenance measures to be taken range from removing steps from above ground pools, never utilizing a pool with a broken or missing drain cover and keeping emergency rescue equipment on hand to utilizing a rope flat line to signify to swimmers the changes in depths. Additionally, all pools must be permitted by the town and have a physical barrier surrounding them.
“Another huge tool and, perhaps, the second most important thing to adult supervision is teaching your child how to swim at an early age,” said Murray, stressing the importance of swimming skills in overall water safety.
The town has recently been promoting a pool safety guide in conjunction with partners King Kullen and Cablevision, which is available at all town pools, King Kullen Stores and Cabelvision customer centers. Interested residents can also receive a copy by calling the town at 516-812-3272.
“It is critical that we continue to remind the residents about these very simple safety issues to protect our children,” said Jeff Clark, Director of Government Affairs at Cablevision.
