A huge number of water-related incidents occurred this summer in Manitoba. Three steps on how to survive, called Swim to Survive Standard, will save a lot of lives.
Three volunteers showed how to act according to Swim to Survive Standard to CTV News at St. Malo Provincial Park on Monday.
Jon Sorokowski, one of the volunteers, is an experienced swimmer, but even he assumes a situation when going out of a safe swim zone he can be caught off guard by the water. Sorokowski said that there can be weeds right away under the feet, and any person can start panic being in such a situation, even if he considers himself really a good swimmer.
Christopher Love, water smart coordinator, suggested that three key standards can save lives of thousands of people. If people remember these three things, they will not get lost at a difficult moment and be able to survive, even if they fall into the open sea from a ship, yacht or boat.
Roll in deep water. Rolling and following bubbles will help you find the surface.
Tread water for 1 minute. Thus any person can calm down and find the nearest safe direction for him.
Learn to swim fifty meters. Most of the incidents occur at a distance of 15 meters from the shore, so if you can swim 50 meters, you will survive.
Unfortunately, the level of drowning in Manitoba is much higher than in other provinces in Canada. According to this, the necessary security measures must be taken by all residents.