May 22, 2008

With Memorial Day around the corner, Westchester County is reminding parents and other caregivers of the dangers of inflatable pools.

“While many people recognize the risk of drowning in an in-ground and above-ground pool, many are unaware that inflatable pools pose a significant drowning risk as well,” said County Executive Andy Spano, who noted that between 2004 and 2006 the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission received 47 reports of deaths attributable to inflatable pools.

To make sure that consumers are informed of the risk of drowning associated with inflatable pools, county law now requires stores that sell pools having a depth greater than two feet  post an advisory sign at the point of display. The advisory sign warns that inflatable pools pose a risk to young children and urges parents never to leave a child unsupervised.

“There is no substitute for constant adult supervision,” said Spano, who initiated the law.

Inflatable pools typically carry warning labels. However, the focus of these labels is the danger of diving into the pools and tripping over pool attachments. The county-required signs focus on the threat of drowning. The risk is especially great because inflatable pools are often soft-sided, and a child leaning on the side of the pool can easily tumble head first into the pool and be unable to right him or herself.

Inflatable pools are widely available at supermarkets, pharmacy chains, sporting goods stores and big box retailers.  Some of these relatively inexpensive pools can be quite large, holding hundreds, sometimes thousands of gallons of water. Yet, the vast majority of these pools do not have fencing, covers, alarms or other safety features. And because the pools are too big to dump the water out every day, they sit unattended in the backyard, a drowning hazard.

“We are very concerned that consumers do not understand the risks associated with portable and inflatable swimming pools,” said Don Mays, senior director of product safety and technical public policy at Consumer Union.  “Warnings posted where these pools are sold can help prevent tragic death and injury.”

Inspectors from the Department of Consumer Protection have been fanning out to retailers across the county to distribute the advisory signs and make sure they’re posted.  The department has also reached out to major retail industry groups to spread the word about the required advisory sign.

Said Gary Brown, director of Consumer Protection, “We’re not aware of any reports of drowning in Westchester that are attributable to inflatable pools. Our goal is to keep it that way.”