Don’t Let Summer Turn Tragic: Some Tips For Water Safety
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Catherine Cornish of Image Fitness led the Silver Swimmers water aerobics class at Anderson-Dean Community Park Aquatic Center last week. The class is free and open to those aged 55 and up.
Samuel Warren
Herald Staff
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As summer approaches and temperatures rise, thousands of Mercer County natives will take to the water to cool off, when it’s not raining already. Anderson-Dean has reported a surge of patrons at the community pool since their season opened on Memorial Day weekend, and a break from the rain allowed boaters to pack in Herrington Lake last week. With so many people taking to the water for various reasons, it’s always important to remember how to be safe, and keep others safe, while in the water.
Mercer County native Karla Curtsinger has been working as a lifeguard at the Anderson-Dean Park Aquatic Center since it opened in 2004, and began managing the pool 14 years ago. She has spent time working briefly as a lifeguard on the ocean, at Herrington Lake, and teaches water aerobics classes at Ephraim McDowell Wellness Center. She teaches water safety, and while there are several factors that contribute to a safe time in the water, she magnified some of water safety’s most overlooked vulnerabilities.
The group most affected by lack of knowledge on water safety is also the group most vulnerable to accidents in the water, children, and Curtsinger believes a large portion of accidents would cease to exist if parents took the time to get in the water with their kids.
