Water Safety Ireland is urging people to take extreme caution at waterways nationwide as the warm weather continues.
The appeal comes after a teenage boy lost his life after getting into difficulty while swimming in the sea in Dublin and three people and a dog were rescued from a boat in Lough Derg on Monday.
Last year, a total of 79 people drowned in Ireland. Some 1,108 people drowned in the last 10 years - an average of nine every month.
Read More: Teenage boy dies after getting into difficulty swimming on Irish beach
Figures from Water Safety Ireland also shows lifeguards rescued 473 at risk of drowning last year, reunited 516 children found lost wandering near water and provided nearly 7,000 first aid interventions.
Roger Sweeney, Acting CEO of Water Safety Ireland, said: “Swim within your depth, stay within your depth, stay within your limits, parallel to shore, don’t overestimate your ability/don't underestimate the risk or be too confident and stay away from alcohol until afterwards.”
He advised people should swim in places known to be safe and never use floating toys or air mattresses as a breeze can take you out of your depth.
“Alcohol is a factor in one third of drownings - people can be instilled with a sense of bravado and take risks,” he added.
He also said a lot of children and adults haven’t had swimming lessons for two years due to the Covid-19 crisis.
“They may overestimate their ability based on swimming in an indoor pool versus open water,” he said, adding that rip currents are the most common reason that people get into difficulty as well as getting stranded on sandbanks by incoming tides.
“Drowning is often a silent killer with no splashing or calls for help, therefore supervision is key and staying within your limits,” he advises.
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