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Emergency workers says it’s never too early to teach children how to swim.

Parents should also learn basic swimming safety so they can protect their kids.

WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

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A fun day in the water with friends turned deadly for a Saline County teenager. It’s the second drowning involving a teen this week in Arkansas.

Authorities said 18-year old Michael Ryan Baker was swimming when he went underwater and never re-surfaced.

As the days grow hotter, so does the popularity of cooling off in the Saline River. For Benton resident Joey Stone it’s an opportunity he says to spend quality time with his daughter.

“Tons and tons of people come here.”

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Florida has the highest rate of drowning in the country and for those younger than 4, water is the No. 1 killer aside from birth defects. But the danger is not spread equally among all children.

Overall, black kids drown at a much higher rate than other children. But among the youngest group of kids — younger than school age — whites and Hispanics fare worse. It’s around the 4 or 5 years old when those tides turn and black kids drown at about three times the rate of other children.

The theory is white and Hispanic children have more access to pools, which pose a danger at a young age. Over time though, the same pools become a resource that kids use to learn how to swim.

Photo by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources