Submitted by lemontreelemur t3_yvg986 in todayilearned
Yup.
You might hear somebody call out when they're becoming distressed, but if they go into active drowning there's little to no sound. Maybe some mild swishing sounds.
Yup. I was a lifeguard at a Boy Scout camp, and was up early for a 1 mile swim at the choke point of the pool we had (iirc it was like 25 yards long but had this narrow section in the middle that I was stationed in. It was a very long time ago so could be wrong on the length though). I was dutifully scanning the field of swimmers when another lifeguard on the other side of the choke point yelled my name and pointed basically to my feet. A kid not 2 feet away from the side of the pool, and honestly just inside my scan zone, was struggling to stay up and made ABSOLUTELY ZERO NOISE. It was shocking, and I basically threw the donut straight down on his head. The fact I missed someone in trouble 2 feet away from me kinda fucked me up for a bit, but what I took away from it was that someone drowning makes literally zero noise. None. Zip. Zilch. It was so crazy to me that I could have almost grabbed this person but they never said ANYTHING. It was all good because we designed our lifeguard stations with that in mind, but it was still wild to me.
You shouldn’t feel bad about that… the space directly under a lifeguard stand is usually considered to be a “blind spot” for the lifeguard stationed there. Lifeguards working in teams are supposed to be trained to scan their areas as well as the spaces directly below their fellow lifeguards.
It’s one of those things that seem silly in theory, but in practice can be absolutely vital (as it seems you found out!).
I do appreciate you saying that, cause even though it’s been like a decade it’s always kinda stuck with me as like a “woah” moment. Really drove home just how silent drowning is
Did the person make even a splashing noise?
Edit: just read other comments about what real drowning looks like and makes sense why zero noise.
No, it was like he couldn’t get his hands above the water. Like take every image you’ve ever had about someone drowning and throw it away. It was nuts how quiet it was. Hypothetically if he was the only one in the pool and the same situation happened if you were facing the other way you would have no idea something was wrong
My 6 year old stepped off the bottom step in a pool while I was turned the other way saying something to my grandmother. He made absolutely no noise at all and I only realized he was drowning because I turned around to check and make sure he was still within arm’s reach (you know, so he wouldn’t drown). It’s happens SO fast and it’s so quiet. Now I won’t even swim with my younger kids unless there is a 1:1 adult to kid ratio, even if there are lifeguards, and we don’t take our eyes off them.
My 6 year old stepped off the bottom step in a pool while I was turned the other way saying something to my grandmother. He made absolutely no noise at all and I only realized he was drowning because I turned around to check and make sure he was still within arm’s reach (you know, so he wouldn’t drown). It’s happens SO fast and it’s so quiet. Now I won’t even swim with my younger kids unless there is a 1:1 adult to kid ratio, even if there are lifeguards, and we don’t take our eyes off them.
I worked in the summers at a pool at a boy scout camp too. Only ever had to make one save. We were having a tournament of greased "watermelon" (expert it was a watermelon-sized mayo container partially filled with water). Anyways the round was over and all the kids were swimming back to the sides, except one. He was just dog paddling 2 feet away from the wall. Definitely not making a sound. He was literally right in front of me. And I just watched him dog paddle for awhile before I realized that he wasn't moving at all and that he was in the early stages of drowning. I quickly hit the deck and reached my hand out to pull him in, pretty lame as far as rescue stories go.
But it still struck me as weird that after all the training (and teaching) that I did, it took me so long to identify drowning when it was right in front of me, happening to a kid that I knew because he was in my home troop.
Instinctive Drowning Repsonse is a real bitch.
They teach you to literally punch someone in the chest if they are doing that when they train lifeguards
If you were a lifeguard why the hell didn’t your training tell you what drowning sounds/looks like? That’s a training issue, not your fault.
Yes, indeed. People think a drowning person will splash around and scream. Nope!
And people don’t wave their hands in a broad movement. They’re busy panicking and treading water to keep their face above water and failing at it. They pose a low profile visually with little discernible obvious motion
Saw a replay video outside a swimming pool of occurrences of near drowning.
It's all kids and they just go underwater with hands above their head. Videos like that are educational because it increases your hazard awareness. It's not morbid because all children were raised and fished out promptly before inhaling any/much water.
If you can scream, you can breathe.
Screaming != speaking.
Lol. Not even close to how that works. Just because you can exhale does not mean you can inhale.
In the context of active drowning, to what my original comment was referring, it does. Once your mammalian drowning reflex takes over, your airways close up to prevent you from inhaling water and you are not making much noise.
Correct. Active drowning looks much different than it's portrayed in the movies.
"Look for these other signs of drowning when persons are in the water:
Head low in the water, mouth at water level
Head tilted back with mouth open
Eyes glassy and empty, unable to focus
Eyes closed
Hair over forehead or eyes
Not using legs – Vertical
Hyperventilating or gasping
Trying to swim in a particular direction but not making headway
Trying to roll over on the back
Appear to be climbing an invisible ladder"
Sauce: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mamamia.com.au/what-drowning-looks-like/amp/
I did the invisible ladder climb when I nearly drowned at age 8. I thought if I kicked hard enough my head would get above water and I could breathe again. Luckily someone's mom fished me out and sat me on the side of the pool.
Yep. Seen it happening to my mate in a pool once and pulled him out. He was chatting on minute, stepped back without realising and slipped out of the shallow end to the deep part. No screams, just thrashing. Fucking scary.
900+ people? Was he guarding a whirlpool?
You joke, but I worked a summer at a water park. I had to rescue 3 people in one day who all went under on the same slide. One of them had swallowed enough water in the 5 seconds it took me to get to her that I had to do chest compressions to clear her airway. It’s been 10 years and I still have nightmares.
I've been bringing the reality TV show "Bondi Rescue" which is focused on the lifeguards of Australia's Bondi Beach. Those mother fuckers rescue like 30 people a day, I fully believe this man had 900+ rescues after seeing Bondi
Love this show! Full episodes are available on their YouTube channel.
That's where I'm watching it! I had no interest in this 3 weeks ago now I can name most of the lifeguards on a random beach halfway around the world
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If he decides you're being rescued you're being rescued. Try telling him you're not drowning...
Joking aside, assuming not every rescue is a full-on life or death situation, over a few years I could imagine one or more per day is possible.
Sort of, in the sense it was a volatile, high-traffic area:
>Galveston was a tricky area for all levels of swimmers. On the Gulf side of the island the water is treacherous. There are sandbars and places where the ocean floor drops away unexpectedly. The riptides are a constant issue, pulling under experienced and inexperienced swimmers alike.
>
>The peril was increased because in the early 1900s, few people learned water safety. The first swimming programs in the U.S. began in 1912 (see Wilbert E. Longfellow), and the programs were slow to spread throughout the country. Those who came to Galveston for vacation often did not know how to swim, because few towns and cities had public access to pools.
>
>Yet summers were hot, and there was no air conditioning until the late 1920s-1930s. Many traveled to Galveston to enjoy the cooling ocean breezes, and of course, they went into the water.
>
>Take unpredictable currents and mix in crowds of people who don’t know how to swim (or how to swim well), and Galveston had the makings of daily disaster.
>
>...
>
>Colombo’s additional advantage was that he grew up near the Galveston waters. He had intimate knowledge of how the ocean could behave in all types of weather.
>
>...
>
>Colombo often had to rescue the original victim as well as those who were trying to help.
>
>...
>
>During World War II, the beaches were overrun by soldiers on leave before shipping out, and the crowds were overwhelming. On one single afternoon, he saved 19 people.
>
>One of Colombo’s most dramatic rescues was when a tugboat hit a barge, and the barge burst into flames that quickly engulfed the tugboat. To rescue those on board, Colombo dove under the flames several times to save the men.
Tldr: Before access to swimming lessons and good water safety information, a shocking number of people used to die from drowning, especially in more dangerous areas.
Right! I worked a busy beach one year… the only thing I ever had to get wet for was a stupid Asian fisherman who fell of his kayak and couldn’t swim.
Not to be a douche or overly PC or anything, but what does his race have to do with the rest of the comment?
you’re not bein a douche
Most uncalled for
Asian fishing is mysterious and inscrutable.
WhereI am it’s pretty common for many, not all, Asian fishermen to go out and not have any clue how to swim or how to get back on their boat.
Most people would think they are crazy or stupid.
By saying Asian fisherman I was explaining why someone would be on the water and be unable to swim. They had no business on the water as they put their lives and others in danger.
It might come across as racially prejudicial, but the vast majority of kayak rescues, where I worked, are Asian guys who can’t swim and their buddies are terrified to help… because they can’t swim either.
It is actually true that a lot of people in Asia don’t know how to swim. I live in Vietnam and I have personally resuscitated someone after drowning. I have several other friends who have saved drowning victims. I’ve heard of friends of friends dying because they fell in a lake and no one else could jump in and save them. Drowning is the number one cause of death for children here. None of my Vietnamese friends can swim, even ones who grew up on the coast. When I go on vacation here and to other Asian countries I often see groups of tourists wearing life jackets in waist high water.
That said, I do a lot of scuba diving and the all the boat captains I’ve met do know how to swim.
There are always exceptions to the “norm.”
Not every old fat white guy in Texas is a racist MAGA supporter… but a lot are ;)
Chinese fishermen atleast are notorious for fishing where they have zero rights to fish so they just turn of the radar, which is also illegal and an endangerment to nearby vessels.
Yes, notorious Chinese industrial fishers and their kayaks.
Nothing telling about you immediately jumping to this point from "Asian businessman" at all.
I bet he was illegal whaling in his kayak. Classic Chinese industrial fisherman
Ah true xD forgot the Kayak was mentioned. Sorry I AM quite sleepy.
For what it’s worth. Turning off your own radar doesn’t stop other boats from seeing you with their radar. Their radar sends radio waves out, then measures the time it takes until it detects the reflection.
You are thinking of Automatic Identification System. I’m not sure what the laws are about turning one off if you have one, but you aren’t required by law to have one if you are under 65ft in the US. IDK about china.
I don't recall the specifics either and yeah makes more sense. Thanks for the correction.
Lifeguard from hell
A lifeguard told me that one of the main things they look for is eye contact. “A drowning person calls for help with their eyes”
If we're throwing out one line of helpful information: if you ever think you're drowning KICK YOUR GOD DAMN LEGS.
I used to be a lifeguard and when people are panicky in the water they claw at the water to try and climb out of it. But they don't kick their legs. Your legs are the most powerful muscle groups on your body, drowning people use them as a weight to drown with. Swimming people use them to kick.
One big panic inducing aspect of drowning in an ocean is the wave action - even small ones - splashing water into the victim’s open mouth. They are unable to time the waves and simply aspirate as much air as possible but a small splash of sea water can make them gag and gasp and exacerbate the panic.
When I was in middle school on a guided snorkeling trip, I accidentally inhaled water through the snorkel. I couldn't catch my breath esp with waves crashing into my mouth. I struggled to get to shore, it's hard to do a freestyle stroke when you're in a coughing fit, so I doggy paddled. I was a very coordinated kid and generally felt confident when swimming, but once the coughing started it was just a cascade I couldn't break out of. In one poorly timed breath I went from being perfectly fine to deep trouble.
Yes a pool swimmer can easily be caught off guard in a dynamic environment like the ocean, even close to shore. Currents and waves make swimming a different experience in the ocean. And as you said, choking on an unexpected splash of salty water into your mouth and possibly into your windpipe can be a sudden jarring moment that puts you into a distressed state of mind almost immediately. An untrained ocean swimmer can be quickly overwhelmed even if they know how to swim in pool conditions.
I remember in swim class having a contest of treading with just your legs then just your arms. The arms contest is the only one that had a winner because the legs contest went on for the entire class
The lifeguard test included diving to the bottom of a ten foot pool, recovering a brick, swimming to the surface, holding the brick above your head for some time (2 minutes maybe?) And then treading water without your arms for 10 minutes. It wasn't super easy but in my several years as a lifeguard I don't remember anyone failing
I mean, if we're giving advice, I'm going to go with "Fucking learn how to swim! It might save your life one day!". Think that should about cover it.
That is obviously good advice, but it isn’t attainable for a lot of people. People in lower income areas, and people without economic resources often don’t have regular access to things like swimming pools, or the money to pay for lessons etc. So leaving things at “fucking learn to swim” doesn’t help everyone. Although it is good advice for people able to!
As one of the charity-case-poor never-learned-to-swim people
Another bit of sound advice I keep to is "don't go in the water: you can't swim"
Out of curiosity, is learning to swim something you intend to do, or have you just resigned yourself to staying away from water?
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Thats so interesting to me. I have lived near lakes my whole life, so we learned to swim early, but I can't imagine not knowing it, even if I don't swim more than a few times a year. I think the knowledge is more reassuring than anything.
Congrats on not drowning though! Keep up that streak!
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Lake lemonade. I got the joke, but the idea of lemonade made from lake water...I shudder.
People simply do not think when they panic. As a rescue diver one of the key things you practice is how to save someone who simply forgot to inflate their buoyancy control device on the surface.
In case anyone is wondering, you approach them and tell them to inflate it. If they do not, you submerge yourself before you get too close and come up behind them. Then you inflate your own BCD while wrapping your legs around their tank, reach around and inflate their BCD for them.
As one of the swimming people, your arms pull you through the water much more than the legs do.
Drowning people aren't going for propulsion, they're basically trying to tread water. Your legs are very good at keeping you above water, and have the advantage that even without knowing how to "properly" kick your feet just moving them quickly will usually keep you afloat. Plus, it's not like they're going to stop using their arms.
me face down in the water: 😵
You missed the eye-contact window, try again next time
Wait. What do life guards have against eyesight?
Don’t you know? Drowning people always yell “Help! I’m drowning!”
/s
This guy used his eyes and saved 900 people. If only they’d listen to him at the lifeguard academy and let lifeguards use their eyes.
They can’t listen to him because he’s deaf 🥹
Deaf doesn't mean unable to speak.
It was a joke based on being deliberately wrong
Yeah, but people constantly believe it to be true.
He used his incredible powers of swimming and looking to save lives. A true superhero.
WHO WASN’T USING SIGHT
I worked as a lifeguard at a water park for a summer, and the idea of using SOUND to identify distressed swimmers sounds dumb as fuck to me. No wonder he had to save so many people. None of the other guards were contributing.
I did a report about this guy in high school, dude was insane. Supposedly he swam up the Mississippi River for a race and dislocated his shoulder halfway through and was still able to win. Don't quote that from me tho, it's been a while since I've thought about him.
Lmao
Video games should change the name of the hardest difficulty level to "Overcoming Paralysis By Swimming."
I'll be buried in the cold cold ground before I read the actual article. That's just who I am. So, since I'm not going to read it I'm just going to extrapolate information based on the title.
He was paralyzed as a kid and everyone thought: "Swimming. That'll be his thing."?
Also he saved just under a thousand people from drowning. 1,000 people. 1,000. I don't know man, he sounds like the kind of guy who is a secret arsonist but gets a job with the fire department.
Many serious childhood diseases like meningitis and polio left people partially paralyzed and water exercises were a common physical therapy, especially for poorer people who couldn't afford specialized equipment or personal doctors. Colombo's brothers basically carried him to the ocean, through the water, and back home every day to see if they could get him strong enough to walk again, and luckily it worked.
I know the feeling of not wanting to click on links, so here's the answer to your other question:
>Galveston was a tricky area for all levels of swimmers. On the Gulf side of the island the water is treacherous. There are sandbars and places where the ocean floor drops away unexpectedly. The riptides are a constant issue, pulling under experienced and inexperienced swimmers alike.
>
>The peril was increased because in the early 1900s, few people learned water safety. The first swimming programs in the U.S. began in 1912 (see Wilbert E. Longfellow), and the programs were slow to spread throughout the country. Those who came to Galveston for vacation often did not know how to swim, because few towns and cities had public access to pools.
>
>Yet summers were hot, and there was no air conditioning until the late 1920s-1930s. Many traveled to Galveston to enjoy the cooling ocean breezes, and of course, they went into the water.
>
>Take unpredictable currents and mix in crowds of people who don’t know how to swim (or how to swim well), and Galveston had the makings of daily disaster.
The other thing the article doesn't mention is that the few pools available almost always banned non-White swimmers, so it was especially hard for non-White people to learn to swim in a safe setting. In his biography, Colombo said he tried to pay equal attention to swimmers of all races and ethnicities, which I guess other lifeguards weren't doing at the time (yikes). This would have also increased the numbers of potential drowning victims he noticed and saved.
Thanks for the follow up!!
He could have worked the wave pool at Traction Park one summer
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Yeah I find it hard to believe 900 people would have drowned at wherever he was working
I mean, it helps that he was a lifeguard from age 18 to 62. (Sounds like he loved it, but also, not many jobs for the deaf back then…) If he worked at the beach 5 days a week, that’s more than 11,000 working days. A rescue every 10 working days seems plausible.
*Lifeguard sees a drowning person*
"Hey dude, you good?"
*silence as they sink underwater*
"Yeah they good."
No lifeguard worth their salt uses sound alone. Back when I was a lifeguard, anyone who wasn't watching the water would have been fired or forced through in-service again.
If you've ever been around someone who almost drowned they don't usually make a sound. They just slip under the water.
I once went swimming at the beach. I got too far out and I couldn't make it back, so I started yelling for help. The lifeguard swam out and said, "Hey! Hold it down!" - Rodney Dangerfield
Using sight instead of sound? There’s no way this isn’t standard operating procedure. How can you hear someone I’m drowning on a beach 100 yards away. Sight is the only way.
"Use of sight rather than sound". The sea is noisy as fuck, you'd expect this one to be a given.
A lot of drowning is silent... Expecting someone to call for help is just not realistic
They say that when you lose your earsight it enhances your other senses.
900? did they all wear stone life jackets?
I lifeguarded for years and never had to "save" anyone.
>Galveston was a tricky area for all levels of swimmers. On the Gulf side of the island the water is treacherous. There are sandbars and places where the ocean floor drops away unexpectedly. The riptides are a constant issue, pulling under experienced and inexperienced swimmers alike.
>
>The peril was increased because in the early 1900s, few people learned water safety. The first swimming programs in the U.S. began in 1912 (see Wilbert E. Longfellow), and the programs were slow to spread throughout the country. Those who came to Galveston for vacation often did not know how to swim, because few towns and cities had public access to pools.
>
>Yet summers were hot, and there was no air conditioning until the late 1920s-1930s. Many traveled to Galveston to enjoy the cooling ocean breezes, and of course, they went into the water.
>
>Take unpredictable currents and mix in crowds of people who don’t know how to swim (or how to swim well), and Galveston had the makings of daily disaster.
>
>...
>
>Colombo’s additional advantage was that he grew up near the Galveston waters. He had intimate knowledge of how the ocean could behave in all types of weather.
>
>...
>
>Colombo often had to rescue the original victim as well as those who were trying to help.
>
>...
>
>During World War II, the beaches were overrun by soldiers on leave before shipping out, and the crowds were overwhelming. On one single afternoon, he saved 19 people.
>
>One of Colombo’s most dramatic rescues was when a tugboat hit a barge, and the barge burst into flames that quickly engulfed the tugboat. To rescue those on board, Colombo dove under the flames several times to save the men.
Tldr; it was a dangerous area and people apparently used to drown a lot!
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Sheepdog
This sounds like a Forrest Gump of the ocean type story.
Big props to whoever made a likely difficult decision to hire a deaf lifeguard.
I wonder if itd be possible to make a computer program to identify potential drowning victims, which would then bring it to the lifeguards attention and they could check it out.
Being hyper vigilant for an 8 hout shift like that has to be exhausting.
"Listen Ma'am I'm glad you're breathing and I'm going to save you from drowning, but there's just one other thing I wanted to talk to you about..."
As a former lifeguard, never rely on sound, drowning is a lot more silent of an activity, for lack of a better way to say, than one would expect
It sounds like they should have closed the beach he was lifeguarding at. I don't know the specific stats but that's way above the normal number of incidents, rescues aside.
You are correct, it was very dangerous but swimming was one of the few ways for non-wealthy people to stay cool during heatwaves, and also it was an important military area:
>Galveston was a tricky area for all levels of swimmers. On the Gulf side of the island the water is treacherous. There are sandbars and places where the ocean floor drops away unexpectedly. The riptides are a constant issue, pulling under experienced and inexperienced swimmers alike.
>
>The peril was increased because in the early 1900s, few people learned water safety. The first swimming programs in the U.S. began in 1912 (see Wilbert E. Longfellow), and the programs were slow to spread throughout the country. Those who came to Galveston for vacation often did not know how to swim, because few towns and cities had public access to pools.
>
>Yet summers were hot, and there was no air conditioning until the late 1920s-1930s. Many traveled to Galveston to enjoy the cooling ocean breezes, and of course, they went into the water.
>
>Take unpredictable currents and mix in crowds of people who don’t know how to swim (or how to swim well), and Galveston had the makings of daily disaster.
>
>...
>
>Colombo’s additional advantage was that he grew up near the Galveston waters. He had intimate knowledge of how the ocean could behave in all types of weather.
>
>...
>
>Colombo often had to rescue the original victim as well as those who were trying to help.
>
>...
>
>During World War II, the beaches were overrun by soldiers on leave before shipping out, and the crowds were overwhelming. On one single afternoon, he saved 19 people.
>
>One of Colombo’s most dramatic rescues was when a tugboat hit a barge, and the barge burst into flames that quickly engulfed the tugboat. To rescue those on board, Colombo dove under the flames several times to save the men.
It sounds like wherever this guy was hanging out, swimming lessons for others would have been a good thing.
Leroy Colombo is the most 80s action hero's name I've heard in a long time!
Sight is more important though.
Lifeguards seriously don't get paid enough.
I thought drowning people don’t make noise in the first place?
Being deaf doesnt give you super sight lmfao!
Crazy that we went so long with blind lifeguards.
That’s a long career or a lot of shitty swimmers.
He was the only one to use sight?!?
So all the other life guards just figured, well I can hear so I don't have to look?!?
Wait, could this be diversity and inclusiveness in action??????!!!1one
How the fuck are you able to save 900 from drowning?
>Galveston was a tricky area for all levels of swimmers. On the Gulf side of the island the water is treacherous. There are sandbars and places where the ocean floor drops away unexpectedly. The riptides are a constant issue, pulling under experienced and inexperienced swimmers alike.
The peril was increased because in the early 1900s, few people learned water safety. The first swimming programs in the U.S. began in 1912 (see Wilbert E. Longfellow), and the programs were slow to spread throughout the country. Those who came to Galveston for vacation often did not know how to swim, because few towns and cities had public access to pools.
Yet summers were hot, and there was no air conditioning until the late 1920s-1930s. Many traveled to Galveston to enjoy the cooling ocean breezes, and of course, they went into the water.
Take unpredictable currents and mix in crowds of people who don’t know how to swim (or how to swim well), and Galveston had the makings of daily disaster.
...
Colombo’s additional advantage was that he grew up near the Galveston waters. He had intimate knowledge of how the ocean could behave in all types of weather.
...
Colombo often had to rescue the original victim as well as those who were trying to help.
...
During World War II, the beaches were overrun by soldiers on leave before shipping out, and the crowds were overwhelming. On one single afternoon, he saved 19 people.
One of Colombo’s most dramatic rescues was when a tugboat hit a barge, and the barge burst into flames that quickly engulfed the tugboat. To rescue those on board, Colombo dove under the flames several times to save the men.
Tldr: Before access to swimming lessons and good water safety information, a shocking number of people used to die from drowning, especially in more dangerous areas.
"Im fine i was just playing in the water!"
Him: damn ive had to save this little kid 7 times today
SocalPizza t1_iwe4zbs wrote
Hearing sounds at the beach might lull you into thinking all is well. Actual drowning is usually silent.