Drowning is a serious public health concern. Low-and-middle-income countries are the most affected by drowning, as they carry 90% of the global drowning burden.
‘A South African Epidemiological Study of Fatal Drownings: 2016-2021,’ a study conducted by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), indicates that it is an assumption that drownings occur frequently in the ocean, and an abundance of resources is deployed to prevent these drownings. For this study, it has been determined that drownings occurred more frequently in freshwater in South Africa between 2016 and 2021.
Executive director of drowning prevention at NSRI, Dr Jill Fortuin, states that the purpose of this study is to provide an overview of fatal drownings in South Africa between 2016 and 2021.
“The results of this study indicated that KwaZulu-Natal have had the highest incidence of drowning.
“In addition to that, the zero to four-year age group has the highest prevalence of drowning among all the age categories,” said Fortuin.
She added that in the study, males represent 81% of all the drownings for the time period of the study, which can be attributed to more risky behaviour.
“Examining the data more from a provincial perspective, the second leading province is the Eastern Cape with 1 869 drownings reported for the period. It is followed by Gauteng, which has 1 006 reported drownings and fourth is the Western Cape with 864.”
The finding relating to the age group most affected by drownings is supported by international research.
In addition, recommendations from the World Health Organisation regarding drowning prevention among preschool children, further indicate that there are concerns about drownings among zero to four-year-olds.
Notably, the data in the study is based on reported fatal drownings, so it is possible the number of South African drownings could be higher.
The reasons for drowning are not reported and hence these are not included in the report.
“With the festive season upon us, we are urging extreme caution to South Africans who will be making their way to the coast to not drink and swim, supervise children in and around the water and ensure that you know the emergency number,” concluded Dr Fortuin.
