The Philippine National Police is pushing for the inclusion of swimming lessons in the academic program for grade school and high school students in the country following the death of 45 persons due to drowning in less than three weeks this month.
PNP chief Police Gen. Oscar Albayalde said the figure of 45 deaths occurred from April 5 to April 21 this year.
“This serves as an eye opener, possibly for agencies and organizations involved in promoting personal safety to initiate programs to develop basic drown-proofing and swimming skills,” said Albayalde.
He said the swimming lessons and drown-proofing could be integrated in the physical education curriculum in schools.
The PNP leadership had earlier advised parents to keep an eye on their children while in the resorts or swimming pools.
Most of the victims are reportedly minors while there were cases in which adults drowned for swimming while drunk.
Based on the data of the World Health Organization, some 372, 000 people die every year due to drowning, the third leading causes of unintentional deaths.
In the Philippines, an average of 2,496 deaths per year caused by drowning was recorded from 1980 to 2011. (Aaron Recuenco)
