FORT LAUDERDALE, FL -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) received no reports of pool entrapment fatalities in 2009, although it received eight reports of entrapment incidents that injured seven people last year, according to a report released this week. By comparison, two entrapment deaths were reported to the CPSC in 2008.
On Monday, the CPSC kicked off a Pool Safely campaign, which is designed to reduce the incidence of child-related drownings, submersions and entrapments in swimming pools and spas. The organization also released two annual reports on Pool and Spa Submersions and Circulation/Suction Entrapments.
The entrapments report also found that of the 94 reports of circulation entrapments the CPSC received between 1999 and 2009, 12 of those incidents were fatal, 79 involved injuries and three had no related injuries. Of the 84 entrapment reports that included a location, 58 percent occurred at a private residence, while 42 percent happened at a public facility.
The Pool Safely campaign is part of the CPSC’s effort to carry out the requirements of Section 1407 of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act (VGB Act), the organization said in a statement. The federal VGB Act, signed into law in 2007, mandated new requirements for public pool and spa safety measures and includes a requirement for a national public education campaign designed to raise public awareness, support industry compliance and improve safety at pools and spas.
For the Pool Safely campaign, the CPSC partnered with several organizations, including the YMCA of the USA, American Red Cross, Safe Kids USA, National Drowning Prevention Alliance, World Waterpark Association and Abbey's Hope.