The "Good Swimmer" Illusion
This common backyard water feature is where most teens learn to swim, making them overconfident about jumping into lakes and rivers.
What is a swimming pool?
This moving river water can easily sweep a swimmer away or push them against rocks.
What is a current?
Even if the summer air temperature is hot, lakes and rivers can still be freezing cold because they are filled with this melting liquid.
What is snow or ice?
You should always look for a life jacket that has been tested and officially approved by this military branch.
What is the Coast Guard?
Drinking this liquid at lake parties is a main cause of teen drowning because it slows down your brain and makes you make bad choices.
What is alcohol?
Many teens arrogantly skip life jackets while using these popular one to two person recreational watercraft.
What are paddleboards, kayaks, canoes, paddleboats?
This is a sudden, steep drop in a lake bottom that can instantly put you over your head in deep water.
What is a drop-off?
Jumping into ice-cold water causes this sudden, automatic action where you breathe in deeply and can accidentally swallow water.
What is the gasp reflex? (or cold shock)
If a life jacket is too big, it can slip upward and dangerously cover this part of your body when you fall in.
Face
Jumping into wild rivers from these high structures is heavily banned because you cannot see moving logs or rocks hidden beneath the surface.
What are bridges (or cliffs)?
A life jacket is necessary because it keeps you afloat even if a head injury knocks you into this knocked-out, asleep-like state.
What is unconsciousness or knocked out?
These hidden submerged/underwater debris can trap or hurt a swimmer.
What are tree branches or sharp rocks?
Being in cold water for just 10 minutes makes your fingers freeze up, causing you to lose this physical ability to grab a rope.
What is muscle control (or swimming failure)?
Stowing life jackets under boat seats or leaving them unbuckled on your chest renders them useless, because a life jacket only works if it is worn like this.
What is fully zipped and/or securely fastened?
Wearing this type of heavy, everyday street clothing while swimming will waterlog you, quickly pulling your body downward like an anchor.
What is heavy clothing (like jeans, hoodies, or sneakers)?
Drowning people cannot yell for help because their body is focusing entirely on this single, most urgent life-saving action.
What is breathing (or gasp reflex)?
Because natural lake and river water is so dark and muddy, rescuers need you to wear this bright gear to spot you.
What is a life jacket?
This dangerous medical condition happens when your core body temperature drops way too low from being in freezing water.
What is hypothermia?
By law, a boat must always carry at least this many life jackets on board.
What is one for every person on board the vessel?
This dangerous pool trend, when brought to lakes, involves pushing your body to see how long you can swim underwater, often causing sudden blackouts.
What is a breath-holding contest?
It takes less than this many seconds—about the length of a quick TV commercial—for a struggling swimmer to sink under the water.
What is 20 to 60 seconds?
Teens often try to show off by attempting to swim all the way from one side of a wide river to this opposite side.
What is trying to swim across the river?
The shock of cold water makes your heart beat dangerously fast, which can cause this sudden medical emergency.
What is cardiac arrest (or a heart attack)?
The main metric, along with chest size, printed on a life jacket's tag to ensure it provides enough buoyancy to keep you afloat.
What is your weight?
The dangerous psychological phenomenon where teens take massive physical risks around water simply because they are trying to impress a group of friends.
What is peer pressure?