For Lara Lacharite, a day at the beach, or pool, is a lot more stressful these days.
"They have no fear, so we've got to be [careful], especially at the pool they'll just jump in," says the Prince George mom of two toddlers -- Isabelle and Daniel.
Lacharite, her eyes scanning the shoreline at West Lake where her kids were playing Wednesday morning, says she's a lot more conscious of water since she became a mom.
"You can't leave them alone around water -- even a small amount -- because they can drown in such a small amount of water."
It's an attitude the Canadian Red Cross would like to get across to more people in B.C., with it's "have a word with yourself" towel campaign in conjunction with preventable.ca and BC Hydro.
"We're laying towels on beaches around British Columbia promoting the idea behind water safety for people that are having recreational time in, on or around the water," says Becky Row, regional operational manager for the Red Cross, pointing out there were a record 50 deaths due to drowning in the first seven months of 2010 in B.C.
"The idea is that at any point throughout the province an individual may come across a towel on the beach, which would, of course, prompt some conversation about water safety behaviour," adds Row.
The average number of drowning deaths -- whether at a lake, in a pool or bathtub -- in the province is 60 per year. Between 2003 and 2007 there were more than 50 deaths and 244 hospitalizations from drowning in B.C.
The two most at-risk groups for drowning in the province are children between zero- and four-years-old and males older than 15 using motorized recreational watercraft.
"They're having a real good time," says Row.
"The lifejacket's going to interfere with their tan lines, but things take place very, very quickly and they end up in the water.
"I think for many people, they're surprised at the speed with which an event has take place. It's shocking to people."
Row says the goal of the towel campaign and prevention strategy is to get people to think before they play.
"Sometimes it's the things we do before we even get to the water that can actually take huge steps around injury prevention," says Row. "We want to encourage people to think before they even get to the beach."
Not consuming alcohol and making sure each person has a lifejacket or PFD that fits properly when swimming or boating are simple things people can do to prevent a tragic situation.
The Red Cross campaign is running across the province with towels being laid out in Prince George, Terrace and Dawson Creek in the northern region.
