The risk of drowning doesn’t end when summer is over. The Consumer Product Safety Commission warns that swimming pools may be one risk, but there are other places that a child can drown and most of them are inside our homes.

William Whatley is like a lot of 2-year-olds. “He loves to splash. He loves to fill things up, dump things out, turn things on and off,” says his mom, Heidi Whatley.

William also likes to climb, and he’s curious about everything. So his parents keep doors closed and locked.

“We’ve had to do that because he will climb into the toilet. He will climb onto the counter in the kitchen and try to get into the sink because the water is fun,” Whatley says.

It’s fun, and it’s dangerous. But when most people think about drowning, “they are thinking pools; they are thinking lakes and they are thinking oceans,” says Sean Penn with the metro-Atlanta chapter of the American Red Cross. “But there are other bodies of water that you’ll encounter every day.”

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, nearly 150 children drown every year at home, not in swimming pools but in tubs, buckets and toilets.

“Anything that can collect water can be potentially hazardous to children. [Even] as little as 1 to 2 inches of water can create a hazard,” Penn says.

But experts say parents can safeguard their child in several ways: Put locks on toilet lids and bathroom doors, empty buckets and drain water from sinks and tubs. But the best advice is the most obvious, Penn says.

“Be aware of where your children are, [and] attend them all the time,” Penn says.

Heidi Whatley takes that advice to heart. “Basically, he’s just not allowed in any of the water places in the house unsupervised – ever! That’s our main way of keeping him safe around water,” she says.

Tips for Parents
While most parents are aware of the drowning dangers associated with swimming in pools and other bodies of water, like lakes and oceans, many do not realize the potential hazards around their homes, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Consider the following drowning statistics from the CPSC:

■About 150 children drown at home each year in accidents that don’t involve pools.
■At least 459 children younger than 5 drowned at home from 1996 through 1999. Two-thirds of those deaths involved bathtubs.
■During that four-year period, 58 young children died after falling into 5-gallon buckets, 55 in home spas or hot tubs, 16 in toilets and 38 others in such products as water coolers, sinks, garbage cans and fish tanks.
■The bucket-related drownings reported to the government involved children younger than 18 months, and most died of complications within a month of falling in the bucket. In most cases, the bucket was filled with dirty water that had been sitting for some time.

What types of water hazards should parents look for around their homes? The CPSC warns of several residential dangers that could result in the drowning of a child:

■Bathtubs: Children drowning in bathtubs account for about two-thirds of the 459 reported drowning deaths in the home. The majority of these bathtub deaths occur when the caregiver is not present. In the time it takes to step out of the room to get a towel or answer the phone, a young child can drown. In at least 29 of the 292 bathtub drowning deaths reported to the CPSC between 1996 and 1999, the victims were using bath seats.
■Buckets: Many parents and caregivers may not realize the danger buckets pose. Even a small amount of liquid can be deadly. Of all buckets, the 5-gallon size presents the greatest hazard to young children because of its tall, straight sides. That, combined with the stability of these buckets, makes it nearly impossible for top-heavy infants and toddlers to free themselves when they fall into the bucket headfirst.
■Toilets: Toilets can be overlooked as a drowning hazard in the home. The typical scenario involves a child under 3 years old falling headfirst into the toilet.
■Spas and Hot Tubs: Spas and hot tubs, typically located near or sometimes inside the home, pose another hazard to young children. With their slippery sides, infants and toddlers likely cannot climb out once they have fallen into these products.
■Other Products: Though not as frequently involved in deaths, other products around the home containing water can be drowning hazards. The most common of these are buckets with a capacity different than the 5-gallon size, sinks and fish tanks.
Who is at risk of drowning? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cited the following trends:

■Children under age 1 most often drown in bathtubs, buckets and toilets.
■Children aged 1-4 most often drown in swimming pools, hot tubs and spas.
■Children aged 5-14 most often drown in swimming pools and open water, such as lakes and rivers.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says that children must be watched by an adult at all times when they are in or near water. Children may drown in only a few inches of water. To help prevent home drownings, the AAP and the CDC offer the following safety tips:

■Empty all buckets, pails and bathtubs completely after each use – do not leave them filled and unattended. Buckets, accessible to children, that are left outside to collect rainwater are a hazard.
■Keep young children out of the bathroom unless they are closely watched. Teach others in the home to keep the bathroom door closed. Install a hook-and-eye latch or doorknob cover on the outside of the door.
■Never leave a child alone in a bathtub or in the care of another child, even for a moment.
■A baby bath seat is not a substitute for supervision. A bath seat is a bathing aid, not a safety device. Babies have slipped or climbed out of bath seats and drowned.
■Use a rigid, lockable cover on a hot tub, spa or whirlpool, or fence in all four sides as you would for a swimming pool.
■Set your water heater thermostat so that the hottest temperature at the faucet is 120 degrees Fahrenheit to avoid burns.
■Throw away or tightly cover water or chemical mixtures after use.
■Watch children closely when they are playing near wells, open postholes or irrigation or drainage ditches. Fill in empty holes, or have fences installed to protect your child.
■Learn CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) – it can be a lifesaver when seconds count.
In the event that your child is drowning, the National Swim School Association cites these emergency tactics:

■Yell for help. Carefully lift your child out of the water.
■Start CPR immediately. Have someone call the emergency medical service (911).
■Even if your child seems normal when revived, see your pediatrician right away.