SwimSafe Community Meeting Touts Grass Roots Education Efforts on Water Safety on Lake Tapps

At least 50 community members gathered at North Tapps Middle School Wednesday to discuss water safety as the summer water recreation season approaches in a meeting that featured both Pierce County Councilmember Dan Roach and Bonney Lake Mayor Neil Johnson.

Roach lauded the grass roots coalition that includes Cascade Water Alliance, Bonney Lake Police Department, East Pierce Fire and Rescue, Pierce County, the city of Bonney Lake and both the Sumner and Dieringer School Districts in going about community education and awareness of staying safe while enjoying Lake Tapps this summer.

Students at North Tapps have also embarked on a Project Citizen Civics program in which they've explored ideas for why drownings occur, how to make the lake safer and how to educate people about its dangers. The seventh grade class has proposed flashing LED signs at both public parks to announce cold water warnings, as well as a memorial wall at Allen Yorke Park for those who've lost their lives in the water.

Johnson shared with the community that a new emergency phone along with additional signage is now available at the park to expedite calls for help. 

Bonney Lake Police Officer Todd Green, through a boat safety simulation in which volunteers were asked to put on a life vest under their seat in 10 seconds, advocated that those who want to boat on the lake should make sure they have functional life jackets that fit properly when they go on the water. Citizens should either have the jackets already on or have them close by enough to be able to put them on quickly, because a boat can sink following a collision, in under 10 seconds. 

Editor's note: Due to ongoing technical problems, a video that accompanies this story has been uploaded to the Bonney Lake-Sumner Patch Facebook page. Click here to view it. 

Safety Takeaways:

• Know Lake Tapps
  

• It's from a glacier
• It's really cold - 55 degrees! Your body loses heat 30 times faster in water
• The colder the water the quicker cold water incapacitation will occur

• Everyone's at risk, especially the elderly, children, people with lower body fat
• Males (whose bodies generally cool faster than females) are at greater risk
• An average adult has a 50 percent chance of surviving a 50 yard swim in 50 degree water

• Know your Limits: Drownings happen when you

• Are too cold
• Are too tired
• Are too far from safety
• Have had too much sun
• Have had too much strenuous activity
• Don't know how to swim well
• Use alcohol or drugs
• Don't wear a life jacket

• Wear a life jacket when boating, tubing, and rafting
• Wear a life jacket when swimming where there are no lifeguards
• Watch for shivering, altered judgment, blue fingers, toes or lips
• Learn how to swim
• Learn CPR
• Know what to do when in trouble