MIAMI (WSVN) - Students at a Miami-Dade elementary school received a lifesaving lesson, Thursday.
Miami-Dade schools participated in the annual Learn to Swim program. Each year, close to 4,000 students throughout the county receive swimming lessons — highlighting the importance of water safety
“Drowning is the number one unintentional cause of death for children ages 1 and 5,” said swim instructor Elaine Economyx. “It sometimes falls to number two. This is a national statistic, and Florida leads all states in drowning deaths.”
“Considering Miami’s location, surrounded by water, with so many canals and public schools, learning how to swim, quite frankly, is something that’s fun, but potentially lifesaving,” said Miami-Dade Schools superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
The program has been around for almost 45 years, with the goal of teaching up to one million swim lessons annually.
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