Drowning: The Exit Problem

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education Volume 8 | Number 1 Article 8 2-1-2014 Drowning: The Exit Problem John Connolly The Lifesaving Foundation, Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijare Recommended Citation Connolly, John (2014) "Drowning: The Exit Problem," International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education: Vol. 8 : No. 1 , Article 8. DOI: 10.25035/ijare.08.01.08 Available at: https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijare/vol8/iss1/8 This Education Article is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@BGSU. It has been accepted for inclusion in International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education by an authorized editor of ScholarWorks@BGSU. Connolly: Drowning: The Exit Problem International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, 2014, 8, 73-97 http://dx.doi.org/10.1123/ijare.2013-0029 © 2014 Human Kinetics, Inc. Drowning: The Exit Problem John Connolly “The Exit Problem” proposes that an unknown percentage of swimmers who die by drowning do so because they swam to where they think they are safe and they find themselves unable to exit the water, as opposed to drowning because they are unable to swim to safety. Forced to remain in the water, they eventually are swept away by currents as they become fatigued, trapped by underwater objects, bashed against rocks, trapped in mud, or they eventually succumb to cold shock and lose their grip as they are holding on to something. We suggest a number of solutions such as use of lights at ladders and other exit places and placement of hanging knotted ropes or grab chains at locations with steep sides. Keywords: lifesaving, drowning, hypothermia, swift water, survival, water safety, swimming. It is generally accepted that more than a half of drowning deaths occur close to safety (Home Office UK, 1977) and that the majority of casualties can swim (Home Office UK, 1977; Lifesaving Society, 2004). Both of these conclusions raise the possibility that some swimmers drown because after having swum to where they belive themselves safe, they cannot exit the water and eventually succumb to cold or fatigue. In this paper, I use sample extracts from Irish police drowning reports, rescue reports, award citations, and news reports to illustrate different aspects of what I call “The Exit Problem.” The body of the paper contains short excerpts with more complete reports available in appendices. I deliberately excluded two categories of drownings from this study: suicide by drowning incidents to avoid the possibility of a casualty not wanting to exit the water and drownings in rip currents since a great deal of research has been devoted to this major cause of drownings. Both categories could skew the outcomes and conclusions. I do not offer this paper as a comprehensive and inferential study since there is an Irish bias in the documents. Although over 3,000 reports were examined (1,000 official reports and 2,000 news reports), they are a very small sample of those available worldwide. News reports examined were mostly from small local papers in Ireland and the United States. Local Irish newspapers devote much space to reporting local drowning and rescue incidents, including Coroners Court reports and can provide both an initial account of an incident shortly after it occurs and a comprehensive account following an inquest some time later. To meet confidentiality conditions entered to obtain access to police reports, all names and other identifiable details have been removed from all reports. There are no duplications (i.e., John Connolly is with The Lifesaving Foundation in Waterford City, Ireland. 73 Published by ScholarWorks@BGSU, 2014 1 International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, Vol. 8, No. 1 [2014], Art. 8 74  Connolly no report is used more than once) to allow for the inclusion of a larger number of excerpts in a short document. Upon reading the appendices, it should be clear that some casualties had to deal with more than one exit problem. It is my hope that in outlining the possibility that an “Exit Problem” actually exists, others will follow up and search drowning and rescue reports in their home countries for evidence to support or refute my hypothesis. Lifesaving organizations have devoted little space in their manuals to exiting the water. They give advice to swimmers on how to stay afloat in fast and powerful water, such as to swim into a river current at 45° or to scull feet first. But, once the swimmers reach the riverbank, there has been little written on how to exit the water. Rivers When water moves in one direction between banks or walls, such as in a river, the strength of the flow is strongest in the middle and weakest at the sides, where friction between the water and riverbank slows it down. This friction results in a spiral of water close to the bank called helical flow which pushes objects away from the river side into the main current in the middle of the river. When a person falls into a river with fast flowing water, they are quickly moved away from the safety of the bank into the main current. The following are several excerpts from reports that refer to this helical flow: • A nonswimmer fell into the river . . . (and) was carried into the middle of the river by a strong current. • The elderly man slipped and fell into the water at the beauty spot and was swept out into the river. (Appendix 1.1) Away from the river’s edge, casualties are quickly swept downstream by the main current in the middle of the river: • Both men were swept downstream toward the bridge. • Due to fatigue and a strong current they were swept along toward the city bridge. (Appendix 1.2) Having recovered from the initial shock of being in the river, a casualty may swim toward the perceived safety of the riverbank and find him- or herself struggling against helical flow: • The rescuer reached the child and was heading back to shore when they encountered a strong current. He pushed the child across the current but was unable to cross himself and went under. • The youth managed to get the girl to shore where two older sisters were standing, but he was swept downriver. (Appendix 1.1) If a river is in flood, this adds to the exit problems as a doubling of water speed results in a quadrupling of water force (Ray, 1997, p. 14): • A search resumed for the body of a teenage boy who drowned in a flooded river . . . Locals say that the river is extremely fast flowing. https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijare/vol8/iss1/8 DOI: 10.25035/ijare.08.01.08 2 Connolly: Drowning: The Exit Problem Drowning: The Exit Problem   75 • Even the strongest of swimmers would have difficulty in whitewater conditions after heavy rain. (Appendix 1.3) An added feature of rivers in flood is that the fast flowing water can undercut the riverbank. • Police said: “The water was very cold and moving violently. It erodes the riverbanks turning once-solid surfaces into danger zones.” (Appe (...truncated)