Three tips to keep you and your family safe in the water
HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The Fauria family is celebrating the Fourth of July on the water.
"We've done wake-boarding and tubing and all of that today," said Cory Furia as she floated on a tube behind her parents' boat. "Just a lot of good family time."
Like so many Texans they've found it the perfect place for a holiday.
"The good weather, the nice lake, and family," said Cory's sister, Christina Fauria. "Being together on the holiday."
It is also a potentially dangerous place.
Already this weekend, two people have drowned on the San Jacinto River. One of them was a 50-year-old man who went under at Banana Bend. The other was a seven-year-old boy who drowned near Love's Marina.
Man drowns while swimming at Banana Bend
Boy, 7, drowns in Crosby marina
Monday on Lake Conroe, a 54-year-old nearly died after jumping in to cool off.
"He went under twice for about 20 seconds," said Lt. Tim Cade with the Montgomery County Precinct 1 Constable's Office. "They finally got to him, and when they got to him it was right there at the threshold."
It is busy on holidays and weekends. Waterways can get crowded. On Lake Conroe, Precinct 1 Constables bring along EMS technicians for added safety. People sometimes don't realize their ability to stay afloat lessens as the day wears on.
"Definitely as the day goes on," explained Montgomery County Hosptial District EMS Supervisor Patrick Langan, "The more you drink and being in the sun tires you out. If you go to get in the water and it's choppier, you're not going to have the same ability as you would on a regular day."
The best advice, emergency responders suggest, is to wear a life jacket and to know the rules of the water.
"Number 1 is people educating themselves prior to coming out," said Lt. Cade. "Number 2, people following the laws while they're out here. And Number 3, the person operating the vessel, him not being drunk."
