Fear of drowning in children
According to the People's Committee of Lam Dong province, from February 15, 2026 to now, the whole province has recorded 15 drowning incidents, killing 16 people, including 6 children.
The youngest victim was born in 2024, the oldest was born in 2012.
Lam Dong has a diverse terrain including highlands, midlands and coasts, forming a dense system of rivers, streams, and dams.
The whole province currently has about 500 large and small rivers and streams; nearly 2,000 reservoirs, irrigation dams, hydropower plants and about 50,000 artificial ponds and lakes serving agricultural production.
In many coffee, durian and vegetable growing areas, people spontaneously dig ponds to store water with large depths. Meanwhile, many areas are not fenced off, lacking warning signs and rescue equipment.
According to records, most child drowning incidents occur at coffee irrigation ponds, self-dug reservoirs, irrigation dams, water canals or sections of rivers and streams with strong currents.
There are many cases where children invite each other to bathe in streams, catch fish or play near the water but lack adult supervision.
The steep terrain, many underground rocks and fast currents in the rainy season also increase the risk of accidents. After just one heavy rain, many areas experience deep whirlpools and strong currents, which are very dangerous.
Currently, students have completed the semester exam and have more time to have fun during the summer.
In rural areas, many children often go to ponds, lakes, rivers and streams to fish and swim while lacking drowning prevention skills.
According to Senior Lieutenant Colonel Pham Thanh Nam - Deputy Head of the Fire and Rescue Police Department of Lam Dong Provincial Police, drowning is a particularly dangerous accident because it happens very quickly but has serious consequences.
In many cases, children sink into the water in just a few seconds without having time to call for help.
Lieutenant Colonel Nam said that children in rural areas currently lack river and water safety skills, many children have not been formally trained in swimming or self-rescue skills when encountering accidents.
Strengthening equipping skills to prevent
Functional agencies recommend that people need to equip themselves with safety skills when swimming such as warming up before going into the water, handling cramps, encountering whirlpools and first aid skills for drowning people.
For households living near ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, it is necessary to build barriers and place warning signs in dangerous areas to limit children's access.
When a person is found drowning, calmly shout for help, call for support and use floating objects to rescue. Absolutely do not jump in to rescue if you do not know how to swim or do not have rescue skills.
Mr. Truong Minh Thang - Principal of Quang Trung Secondary School said that after summarizing the school year, the school has coordinated with the youth union and the local Team Council to hand over students for summer activities; and at the same time organized talent classes, equipping students with skills to prevent injuries and drowning.
According to the goals of Lam Dong province, by 2030, strive to have 70% of children and students know how to swim; and at the same time ensure that 100% of facilities organizing swimming and water play activities have trainers and rescue staff.
Mr. Luu Hong Long - Chairman of Da Huoai Commune People's Committee said that the locality has many dangerous rivers, streams, and ponds and lakes, so in addition to propaganda to prevent drowning, it also strengthens inspections and promptly prevents the situation of students swimming in rivers and streams.
The locality has also assigned the police agency to inspect and install warning signs in dangerous areas.
Functional sectors also recommend parents to strengthen management, not to let children arbitrarily swim in rivers, streams or go to deep water areas without adults accompanying them to prevent unfortunate accidents during the summer.
