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- water safety
Friday, April 19, 2024
In Southlake, we take safety seriously; our splash pads are no exception. Although there are a few types of splash pads throughout the City, checks and balances are strategically used to ensure that water play is safe wherever you go in Southlake.
Aquatics Supervisor Jennifer Blackstock and Parks Crew Leader Johnny Lopez know these systems better than anyone, so they joined Minute with the Mayor this week to discuss Southlake’s safety commitment.
There are two types of splash pads in Southlake – the first is the recirculation splash pad, and the second is the flow-through splash pad.
Blackstock mentioned that the splash pad at Champions Club uses a recirculation system outfitted with a UV disinfection system and filter. Water tests are conducted each hour to ensure quality as well. This is the same system the water in the pool at Champions Club also goes through.
The Experience Southlake page about splash pad safety says, “The UV systems at both Southlake splash pads operate above the minimum requirement of 40mj/cm2 dosing rate to ensure an enhanced level of disinfection and user safety.”
Although the same amount of fun, the splash pad at Bicentennial Park is a bit different! Lopez noted that the splash pad at Bicentennial Park is flow-through, meaning that the water is not reused, and it is the same quality of water that flows from the faucets in your home. The water from the Bicentennial splash pad drains into the pond at the park. The pond is then used to irrigate about 80 acres of greenspace in Southlake.
Our teams are dedicated to making this summer a splash while keeping residents safe. To view more in-depth information about how the splash pads work, please visit the Experience webpage.
To watch the full episode of Minute with the Mayor, click below.
Summer fun in the sun is just over the horizon and that means lots of kids will soon be splashing into area pools and water parks. The Southlake Public Education Team is again partnering with Cook Children’s Hospital “Safe Kids” program during Aprils’ Water Safety Awareness Month to ensure that everyone has a safe summer.
Practicing water safety, especially where children are concerned, is vitally important because drowning is the number one cause of death among kids under the age of 5. Texas also leads the nation in child pool drownings. That’s why it is so important to get this water safety message out now before summer arrives.
Safe Kids has created a list of water safety prevention tips as well as a laminated bracelet tag for adults to wear at the pool. The “Water Watcher” bracelet signifies that you are on “active watch” while at the pool. It’s more than just being present; it’s actively watching your child, and other children, with no distractions.
Safety experts say following safety precautions around residential pools or any body of water, such as lakes and water parks, can prevent drownings. They say the best way is to think in layers of protection. The more layers of protection you have the safer your child will be.
Here are suggested layers of protection for your child:
Drownings and near drownings are 8 times more likely to happen to children that don’t know how to swim or are being supervised by adults that don’t know how to swim.
Southlake Fire Chief Mike Starr wants to remind parents and other adults that drowning is silent. “Typically there are few signs that someone is drowning such as screaming or flailing of the arms. The swimmer simply begins to sink and that is why it is so crucial to have a Water Watcher with eyes on swimmers at all times,” said Chief Starr.
Check locally to find out where you can sign up your kids for swimming lessons. If you would like to learn CPR the Fire Department teaches classes the 3rd Saturday of each month. You can contact Fire Prevention Officer Renni Burt at (817) 748-8349 to sign up for CPR or to get a Water Watcher Tag.
The Public Education Team wants everyone to have a fun and safe summer.
Did you know that drowning is the third leading cause of accidental death for children ages 14 and younger? It is the second leading cause of unintentional death among children ages 1 to 4 years.