By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
As summer approaches and residents flock to Puget Sound’s beaches, rivers, and pools, Public Health – Seattle & King County is issuing urgent swimming safety notices. Preliminary data from 2024 indicates that 25 preventable deaths took place in the county, a slight decrease from 30 in 2023, yet still a significant concern.
Officials say the reduction is not enough to ease concerns, particularly as summer activity near water increases.
“King County has seen a rise in drowning deaths in 2024. Our preliminary data shows that we had 25 preventable drowning fatalities. I would say one fatality is one too many, and 25 is a lot of loss of life. That is a concern,” said Gurman Kaur with Public Health – Seattle & King County.
“King County residents, as summer comes around, we feel the joy of our beautiful surroundings, and one of the ways people like to recreate is being outdoors in nature,” said Kaur. “And with so many water bodies around our area, swimming and being around those water bodies, including boating and kayaking, etc., people like to be out and about. So today I want to take some time to just talk about why water safety is really important.”
Swimming is more than a leisure activity—it’s a life skill that can help prevent tragedies. Public Health officials emphasize that being water competent goes beyond knowing how to swim. It involves understanding the specific risks in different water environments and knowing how to prevent and respond to emergencies.
One key concern is the disproportionate impact drowning has on Black residents in King County. Decades of limited access to swimming facilities have led to lower swimming proficiency and higher drowning rates within Black communities.
“Efforts to reverse this trend are underway through local programs dedicated to increasing swim education and access,” said Kate Cole, Information Officer for Public Health – Seattle & King County.
Several initiatives are available to help address this disparity:
• Swim Seattle offers free swim lessons for scholarship-eligible children ages 6–16 and discounted lessons for all ages.
• The Black Community Equity Team works to improve health access, including aquatic safety.
• YMCA of Greater Seattle provides free and reduced-cost swim lessons for income-qualified participants.
• Harborview Injury Prevention & Research Center focuses on drowning prevention and water safety by expanding access to pools and swim programs.
• No More Under, a local nonprofit, recently supported 350 children across 12 locations with free swim lessons.
• Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center provides affordable swim lessons and public swim sessions for families across the region.
While many programs aim to increase swimming access, Public Health is also urging residents to adopt simple, effective precautions.
“Good news is that there are things that work. We know what works, supervising children works. We know that the water can get very cold. We know life jackets work, so that’s a very easy and preventable way to be safe in water,” said Kaur. “We know that there are beaches that are lifeguarded, so we recommend folks to go to the beaches that do have lifeguards.”
Water temperature is one of the most overlooked risks. Even on an 80-degree day, Puget Sound waters can remain dangerously cold—typically between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
“We know that rivers, the Sound and our lakes can get very cold,” said Kaur. “Folks don’t realize that their bodies can go into cold shock, even if it’s warm out. Water is still very cold, and we don’t realize that.”
Alcohol and drug use is another major factor in drowning deaths, with over 60 percent of recent fatalities linked to substance use.
“A network of partners that we share all of this information with share the message of how can we be safe around water bodies and one of the ways is to really avoid drinking and using any drugs when you’re recreating around the water,” said Kaur. “If you’re planning to go into the water, if you’re in a boat, like I said our data found over 60% of drowning fatalities were related to alcohol and drug use, that’s a significant amount.”
Kaur also encourages families to plan ahead and clearly assign supervision roles when swimming, especially with children.
“We highly recommend people to take all the precautions that I’ve already talked about, and I can summarize those for you when they are recreating around water, especially with kids,” said Kaur. “Even in pools when you have parents that are around make sure that there’s one person that’s designated who does not leave the pool side, even goes with small kiddie pools.”
“Wearing life jackets, it’s so important to wear a life jacket. That is a lifesaving mechanism. We have resources for life jackets. Our website has a coupon that people can download to purchase a life jacket,” Kaur added. “People should swim at beaches and in areas where there are lifeguards, so I recommend taking a look at our website to see which beaches and pools have lifeguards and suggest folks to swim there and then avoid drugs and alcohol when you are recreating in or around water.”
