The Syria Civil Defence has recorded 24 drowning cases resulting in death in northern Syria, including ten cases involving children, since the beginning of this year.
In a statement by the Syria Civil Defence today, Friday, July 26, on the occasion of World Drowning Prevention Day (July 25), the organization mentioned that its teams received about 50 distress calls for drowning incidents in water bodies in northwestern Syria since the beginning of the year.
In response to these calls, 24 bodies were retrieved, and 21 civilians were rescued, including seven children and two women.
According to the statement, drowning is one of the most common causes of accidental injuries and fatalities worldwide.
The Civil Defence also asserted its commitment to saving civilian lives through water rescue teams and enhancing safety measures that save lives. It emphasized the need for proactive and safe procedures to reduce drowning incidents and their impact on the community.
Today, Friday, two young girls drowned, and their father was asphyxiated while trying to save them during a swim in Lake Maydanki in Afrin countryside, northwestern Aleppo.
On July 13, two children drowned in a water pond near the Mohammadiya River area in Jindires, Afrin countryside.
On July 12, the water rescue teams in the Syria Civil Defence saved four civilians, including two young girls who almost drowned in the Orontes River in Darkush, western Idlib.
The northwestern regions of Syria are witnessing continuous drowning incidents. The Civil Defence continuously issues warnings about the unsuitability and extreme danger of all water bodies in the region for swimming.
The Civil Defence warned residents against swimming in the Orontes River, Lake Maydanki, the water channels in Afrin, and the Euphrates River in Jarablus, as they are not suitable for swimming and extremely dangerous.
It stressed the “need not to attempt to rescue any drowning person, regardless of the relationship, and to seek help and secure safety measures if there is a trained rescuer available. Additionally, to notify the Civil Defence teams as quickly as possible.”