According to the NOYADES survey, between June 1 and July 26, 2015, 661 drownings were counted in metropolitan France and in the French overseas departments and territories. Worse, 199 deaths are recorded.
Judging by the temperatures this Thursday afternoon in the south of France, summer is definitely here! And the lot of dramas that accompany it too. According to the NOYADES survey (1) launched by theInVS (2), between June 1 and July 26, 2015, 661 drownings followed either by death or hospitalization were counted in metropolitan France and in the French overseas departments and territories.
They break down into: 584 accidental drownings, including 199 deaths (this is 90 more than the first intermediate results which ended on July 5), 60 intentional drownings (suicide, attempted suicide, assault), including 40 deaths, and finally 17 drownings of unknown origin, including 14 deaths.
Half of drownings take place at sea
In more detail, 263 of these drownings (45%) took place at sea, 155 (27%) in swimming pools of all types, 81 (14%) in bodies of water, 64 (11%) in rivers and 21 (4%) in other places (baths, basins, etc.).
And among the 155 pool drownings, more than half took place in a private family pool, and a third involved children under 6 years old.
Almost half of the 250 drownings at sea involved people aged 65 or over, and 60 (24%) involved people under 25.
Finally, of the 64 drownings in a watercourse, 27 (42%) concerned people aged 45 and over, and 16 (25%) concerned people aged 25 to 44.
The proportion of fatal drownings varies with age
In addition, all ages combined, the 199 accidental drownings followed by death break down into: 68 (34%) at sea, 45 (23%) in rivers and rivers, 42 (21%) in swimming pools, 40 (20%) in water, and 4 (2%) in other places.
An important point provided by the InVS, the proportion of deaths by drowning varies greatly according to age (see the graph below).
An average of 4 deaths per day
Conclusion of the investigators, with 199 deaths by drowning recorded over 8 weeks, the French average of fatal drownings stood at 3.6 deaths per day in the summer of 2015. All ages and all places are concerned (see the graph below). below).
(1) The NOYADES 2015 survey was launched in May 2015. It is organized by InVS and Inpes, with the support of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Housing, and the Ministry of Sports. Data collection is handled by SEPIA-Santé.
(2) The Institute for Health Watch
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