Amber Smith is partnering with the National Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA), a California-based nonprofit organization, to promote conversation and awareness about water safety and drowning prevention ahead of the summer months. Masu.
On June 4, 2019, Amber Smith and her husband, country music singer Granger Smith, experienced a parent’s worst nightmare.
Their 3-year-old son, River, slipped through the fence surrounding the family’s swimming pool and drowned.
Prevent drowning: Keep your child safe in and near water with these tips
After two agonizing days in the hospital, hoping and praying for positive answers from doctors about their child’s condition, the couple realized that a full life was not possible and decided to donate her organs to River. .
River Kelly Smith was just 3 years old when she drowned in her family’s pool. (Smith family)
“It was quiet, it was fast. There were other people outside, but no one heard anything, no one saw anything,” Smith told FOX News Digital during a video interview.
“I didn’t know I had the number one killer in my backyard.”
NDPA CEO Adam Catchmarchi told FOX News Digital by phone that drowning is the most common cause of death for children between 1 and 4 years old.
“Almost 70 percent of drownings in young children occur during non-swimming times,” Kutchmurchie said.
Country music singer Granger Smith turned to faith during her darkest time: ‘It saved my life’
The Smith family had just finished dinner and the three children were playing with Granger outside in the garden when River slipped through the locked fence surrounding the pool.
Paramedics were able to revive River’s heart. But his brain had been starved of oxygen for too long.
River Smith’s birthday is May 16, and every year her family sends her sweet treats that she donates to those in need. (Smith family)
“He got to the water within seconds,” Smith said.
River was wearing pajamas and almost getting ready for bed when the accident occurred.
“If there’s water, there’s a risk of drowning,” Kutchmurchie said.
“Layers will fail, and all layers can fail. You never know which layers will fail and which will prevent you from drowning. That’s why it’s important to practice all your layers. ”
“Parents need to practice multiple layers of protection.”
Cacchimasi said there is no one solution to preventing drowning, and multiple layers of protection are needed to keep children safe near bodies of water.
He provides comprehensive water safety information including barriers, alarms, parametric fencing, access restrictions, surveillance, lifeguards, water supply capabilities, U.S. Coast Guard approved life jackets, and proper CPR training for emergencies. approach is recommended.
Country star Granger Smith’s children saved him from ‘rock bottom’ after losing son: ‘They were God’s gift to me’
“Even if a child is wearing a flotation device, parents still need to practice multiple layers of protection,” Kutchmurchie said.
He recommends contact monitoring, where parents maintain close enough contact with their children in and around the water to be able to reach out and touch them.
“Our stories are being buried, and part of that is sharing what we didn’t know, that we need locks and fences and guards and gates, and that we need to educate our children about water. Part of that is letting parents know that there is,” Smith said.
Before the river accident, the Smith family used Puddle Jumper arm floats for their children. Smith said it wasn’t Puddle Jumper’s fault that the child died.
However, she now realizes that the float was giving the children a false sense of security and causing them to drown.
“We teach our kids that water is always fun, and when they think they have the skills they need to survive, when they actually don’t. We put floats on them and put them in dangerous positions,” Smith said.
“We have a mission to share what a first sport should be, and we call it First Sport because it is about giving kids the skills they need to survive in the water. is.”
Granger Smith and wife Amber expecting son after death of 3-year-old son River: ‘God gave us a miracle’
First Sport is an NDPA campaign featuring a talking toddler who encourages parents to enroll them in swimming lessons. Cacchimasi explains that while many parents seek swimming lessons each year, there is a shortage of lifeguards and water safety has become an underfunded public health issue across the country.
“There are not enough swimming instructors to teach all the children in the country who want to learn how to swim,” he said. “We just don’t have enough capacity. We need to invest in community pool infrastructure.”
Amber and Granger Smith welcomed their fourth child, Maverick, in 2021. Maverick started swimming lessons when he was just 8 months old. (Smith family)
Some parents across the country are hesitant to let their young children participate in school activities due to fears that their children will drink too much water or cry.
“They don’t do anything that’s dangerous to your child,” Smith said of swim instructors.
In August 2021, Amber and Granger Smith welcomed their fourth child, Maverick, into their family. She says he first started swimming lessons when he was 8 months old.
“He learned to control his breathing at eight months old,” Smith said.
Maverick was learning to roll around in the water and find air on his own. Smith and her husband brought Maverick home for lessons again when he was 20 months old. Now she says he is swimming in the bathtub.
Click here to sign up for our lifestyle newsletter
“It was hard to see him cry and call for mommy, but sometimes you have to do things with kids that are hard to give them the skills they need,” she said. Ta. “I would do anything to hear River scream again.”
Kutchmarki said there is a stigma attached to child drowning in the United States, and too often parents who lose a child to a silent killer are thought of as “bad parents.”
“I would do anything to hear River scream again.”
“It could happen to you, too,” he said. “It can happen in 20 seconds to 60 seconds. Drowning is preventable. We just need to figure it out ourselves. No parent right now wants to think about losing a child in such a horrifying and tragic way. They think, “That won’t happen to me.”
The First Sport campaign begins on May 1, 2024, which is also River’s birth month.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“We remember him that day, and we always try to do something special for others that day,” Smith said on May 16, River’s birthday. talked about.
“I don’t say he’s going to be 7 or 8 or 10 or 20. He’s always been 3.”
“He is always three years old because he has survived the number of days that God has set aside for him,” Smith concluded.
For more lifestyle articles, visit: www.foxnews.com/lifestyle.
