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7:14. With warmer temperatures finally arriving, families across the DMV are slowly heading back to the pool. But before you dive in, safety experts say a few simple precautions can help prevent tragedies around the water. Joining us live from the Wheat and Glenmont pool is Montgomery County Recreation Director Gabe Albernaz. Gabe, good morning to you. Thanks for being with us. Thanks so much, Marcela. It's good to be with you. Uh, of course, this is really, really exciting time for a lot of families.
Summer is here, getting back into the water. Uh, but really important messages to talk about before we get to that point. So, what are some of the biggest pool safety reminders that parents need to keep in mind? Absolutely. Well, drownings are sadly the third leing leading cause of deaths for children under the age of 12. And so, it's critically important that we follow important steps to keep our kids safe this summer and all year round. Here at McGomery County Recreation, all seven of our outdoor pools are going to be open today. And we're going to expect thousands of families to be coming through these gates soon. And it's important first to get acclimated with
the pools, uh the rules of each individual pool. They all have different water features as you see behind me. And it's important that we understand the rules. Second, uh it's important that we keep our kids hydrated. Today's going to be a gorgeous day, but before you know it, it will get hot. And the more exercise and the more that we exert in the water, the more dehydrated we become. And third, it's really important that we stay vigilant, that we keep an eye on our kids, and that we put our cell phones down because although we have outstanding lifeguards that are well trained and do great work, it's re we ourselves that uh can keep our families the safest.
Yeah. And talk about that a little bit more because I think it is a big misconception that you think a lifeguard is on duty. I can kind of let my guard down a little bit. So, why is active supervision from parents still really important here? Well, it's important because kids can move around and while our lifeguards are strategically placed around all of our pools, when they are at their height, there could be dozens if not hundred people, hundreds of people around the area. Uh, and so it's important that we keep our eyes on our kids throughout the entire experience. um because we are the ones that are going to be able to keep our eyes on them best. And how important are our swim lessons when it comes to preventing water
related accidents and what's available to people in Montgomery County? Absolutely. If you visit moorreck.com, you can follow uh and track all of our swim instruction options and opportunities. And it is important that kids learn how to swim from the earliest possible ages, but it's never too late. And for parents uh who are not uh don't know how to swim themselves, it's never too late for them as well. And so uh we encourage you to visit any one of our seven outdoor pools or five out in our seven outdoor pools and our five indoor pools to find out more about aquatics lessons. But again, you can visit moorre.com to find out what's available in your community.
All right, Gabe Albernaz with Montgomery County Recreation. We appreciate your time. I know a lot of people are looking forward to an exciting summer, but obviously safety is first and foremost. Thanks so much. Yes.
