Swimming safety amid lifeguard shortage

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)--- There’s a nationwide lifeguard shortage.

"We’re in a critical situation, where with over 309,000 parks and pools half of them are already reporting closings or reduction in hours," said Wyatt Werneth, Spokesperson for the American Lifeguard Association.

That shortage impacting New York State. The Department of Environmental Conservation announced the Adirondack and Catskill campgrounds are transitioning to unsupervised swimming.

To help combat the lifeguard shortage, a law was recently signed by Governor Hochul to lower the minimum age of lifeguards at children’s camps to 15, as long as they are directly supervised.

Werneth said being a lifeguard is a wonderful job.

"We’re very observant, we use scanning techniques, victim recognition, as well as pre-water detection. That simply means that we stop people getting into danger before they get into danger."

The governor also extended the state’s Commission on Childhood Drowning.

Senator Tim Kennedy in a statement, said he expects the findings to reduce water-based fatalities long-term, saying in part, "In the United States, more children ages 1–4 die from drowning than any other cause of death. In New York State, we're determined to identify tangible ways to prevent that unimaginable heartbreak, and that includes through thoughtful conversation with experts and stakeholders.”

"Educate yourself, take care of your family," said Werneth. "If people in your party do not know how to swim, adults included, get them Coast Guard approved lifejackets and make sure they’re in lifejackets because if they go in the water, and they run into a problem, the flotation device is what’s going to save their lives."