HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — With Memorial Day on the horizon, large numbers are expected to enjoy the holiday poolside or on an area lake or river. Water safety experts are reminding the public to remain vigilant.
“For most people, this is going to be the first time or the first weekend that they’re back in a pool, a lake, or a river,” David Kalange, aquatics activities manager for the City of Huntsville.
Memorial Day is generally one of the busiest times of the year for Huntsville City pools. But Kalange is expecting even more people this year as the country continues its return to normal.
“We monitor the number of people in the pools. We monitor how many guards we have available to watch the people in the pools and things like that and then we add or subtract the guards based on the number of people,” said Kalange.
While many city pools are monitored by lifeguards, many will be heading to rivers or lakes where there may not be a guard on duty, areas where Kalange said added awareness about basic water safety is key.
“Open waters, situations can change really quickly, be it from wind, sun, rain, lightning, vehicles, other swimmers, things like that,” said Kalange. “You just need to be vigilant and you need to know your surroundings and be aware of what’s going on.”
Online water safety advocacy group Aquatics Safety Connection said certain colors can also help keep you more safe. The group tested a number of colors for visibility in the water and found that neon orange is the easiest to spot from the surface.