TOLEDO, Spain — It's that time of year again when we all want to have fun in the sun and spend the day in some water.
But we can never say it too much: it's important you're practicing safe swimming.
In fact, three people drowned just last weekend in Southeast Michigan.
"It's the saddest thing to get interviewed after a drowning in the local area," owner of Safe Splash Swim School, Chris Peters, said. "It's preventable."
The CDC reports drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children up to 5-years-old. It's in the top 5 causes for adults up to 54.
Water safety advocate Michelle Fox explained that's why swim lessons for the entire family are a must.
"If you don't know how to swim, your child is 88% likely to not know how to swim, as well," she said. "As much as water can be fun, it can be extremely dangerous."
Last year, Fox lost her 2-year-old daughter Logan when she drowned in the family's backyard pond.
Following the tragedy, she enrolled her family in infant swimming resource training (ISR) not knowing how much she would take away as an adult.
"Going through ISR has taught me so much about how our kids can't be vertical in the water," Fox said. "They need to be horizontal in the water. It's been a tremendous learning experience for us."
Safe Splash Swim School provides swimming lessons for not only children, but also adults.
Peters said you'd be surprised at how many parents miss out on summer activities simply because they don't know how to swim.
"They kind of said, 'enough is enough. I want to learn how to swim.' So, our goal is to get them over the fear first because that's the hardest part," he said. "Once they get over that, the teaching to swim is much easier."
The biggest lesson Peters said to remember is to relax and float on your back if you're starting to panic in water. The more tense you are, the more chance you have to sink. The more relaxed you are, the more chance you have to float.