July 4th water safety; tips for a safe holiday
MILWAUKEE - This holiday week, more people will be out enjoying the lakes, beaches and rivers – and Wisconsin has seen a spike in drownings.
These are horrific incidents that have many people shaken up about water safety. This is why it's crucial to take precautions when you're planning these activities.
Recent statistics from the CDC show the drowning death rate has gone up 10% in the last decade. In Wisconsin alone, there was a 12% rise in these incidents.
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That's something that Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski said becomes more common during the summer months as more people are out at lakes, rivers and beaches.
"Stay away from the edges of the water, especially since we have been seeing so much rain here lately. Those waterways are swollen, that water is moving faster than normal," Lipski said. "Keep your young ones away, keep yourself away, keep other adults away. People don’t understand the strength and speed and hydraulic pressure and that water pressure."
It's also important that you bring and wear proper flotation devices and stay alert of your surroundings when you are around water.
Drowning victim's father's response
"Some people are angels before they went to heaven," Derrick Roberson said, remembering his son J'Varius Bankhead. "He was an angel already."
The 19-year-old drowned while trying to save his young cousins in Lake Michigan in July 2020.
I still miss him so much and nothing can bring him back, and I can still feel it," Roberson said. "Every time I go to the beach, I see him standing out there."
It's a reality that Lipski said is more common during this time of year.
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"Float safety, life jackets, the balloons, the float, anything that you could do to prevent this, because it can happen,'" he said. "It’s somewhat predictable now. The areas that we’re seeing are mostly predictable areas."
Lipski said they have launched water safety efforts on popular water fronts that provide ring buoys with ropes and instructions to follow during an emergency.
"We can't wait on the government or the city or state to save our kids," Roberson said. "We have to do safety things first."