Drowning

[frogmarch]

Watching episodes of Beach Patrol and Ocean Force this morning on TV, I learned about what was called "parking lot drowning" on the shows, which is also known as "secondary drowning," and a related condition called "dry drowning."

https://www.webmd.com/children/features/secondary-drowning-dry-drowning

Excerpt:

You may have heard of the terms “dry drowning” and “secondary drowning.” Those aren’t actually medical terms. But they do point to rare complications that you should know about and that are more common in children.

With so-called dry drowning, water never reaches the lungs. Instead, breathing in water causes your child's vocal cords to spasm and close up. That shuts off their airways, making it hard to breathe. You would start to notice those signs right away -- it wouldn’t happen out of the blue days later.

“Secondary drowning” is another term people use to describe another drowning complication. It happens if water gets into the lungs. There, it can irritate the lungs’ lining and fluid can build up, causing a condition called pulmonary edema. You’d likely notice your child having trouble breathing right away, and it might get worse over the next 24 hours.

From high school through my college years, I was a Red Cross certified lifeguard and received many hours of training through the years, yet until today I'd never heard of parking lot/secondary drowning or dry drowning. Am I the only one?

Edited to add: My granddaughter who's a mom of two young children sent me this message:

I’ve heard of secondary drowning. There was a warning about it on a plastic swimming pool we bought. Little kids can drown hours later, sometimes in their sleep. Super scary.

[Hoyt]

1. Yeah, certified 50 years ago. Today, I'd likely be a danger to someone in trouble.

But, have not heard of that.

[Nay]

2. The only reason I know about it is because I watch the "Bondi Beach Rescue" shows

from Australia. A couple of rescued people each season get 'secondary drowning' or are warned about it before they are released from treatment. It's a thing. I grew up on the Florida beaches and had no knowledge of this growing up.