August 8, 2018.
251 people lost their lives as a result of drowning between the 1er June and July 26, 2018 in France, according to a report from Public Health France. In this first part of the summer season, a quarter of drownings ended in death.
Drowning: children and the elderly are particularly concerned
1,139: the number of drownings recorded between the 1er June and July 26, 2018 in France. Of these drownings, 568 were accidental (126 of which ended in death), 64 were intentional (suicide, attempted suicide, assault), of which 31 ended in death. In addition, there are 507 drownings, the origin of which has not been determined to date, and which have resulted in 94 deaths. In total, 251 deaths are therefore attributable to flooding over these 56 days of surveillance.
Of the 568 accidental drownings recorded, 209 (37%) took place at sea, 164 (29%) in swimming pools of all types, 77 (13%) in watercourses, 75 (13%) in water and 22 (4%) in other places (baths, basins, etc.). Note the particularly high proportion of drownings of children under 6 (143 cases) and people over 65 (97 cases).
Statistically, we drown more in the swimming pool than in the sea
Of the 164 pool drownings, 103 (63%) occurred in a private family pool, of which 79 (77%) involved children under 6 years old. Among these 79 cases, there are 9 deaths. Most accidents involving children are due to a lack of supervision, a fault in the safety device or even a fall, says the health agency.
Of the 191 drownings at sea, 71 cases (37%) involved people 65 years of age or older, and 34 (18%) involved people aged 45 to 64. Finally, the regions where the number of drownings recorded was the highest are Occitanie (114), Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (93) and Nouvelle-Aquitaine (66).
Anton Kunin
Read also: What are the main daily accidents?
