As we all get ready for warmer weather and a new boating season make sure the little ones are safe. There was a very sad story out of the Clear Lake Texas area this week that involved the drowning of a 5 year old little girl who had fell off a dock and into the water.

Missing girl's body found under Kemah boat dock

The search for a 5-year-old girl at a Kemah marina came to a tragic end early Thursday morning

Check out this story on KHOU.com: http://on.khou.com/1GjZscP

that is just awful..

Growin up and livin on our boat during the summer the 1st thing our parents got us 45 years ago were comfortable Stearns life vests..Us kids lived in them that was the rule.Vests on unless you were below deck or in the car.Any where else vests on until the age of 10.


We were constantly out of site of our parents at a very young age but my parents never worried about us with those jackets on. Hell half the time I slept with mine on.

When my son was young I bought those floaty suits with the built in flotation.. He wore one for many years with a Lycra over it.

not as safe as a vest because it does not have the head righting capability in case the child is knocked out , but they are so comfortable the kids wear them with no complaints.

He loved the flotation even though he was a hell of a swimmer and the extra lycra protected him from our Florida sun.

be safe and buckle up the kiddies at a young age . They will become so used to it that it will be second nature to put their life jacket on when around the water.

I can't imagine if that happened to my five year old son we would be devastated... Our children should never pass before we do that's just so sad...

My son goes to swim lessons every week and they teach not only how to swim but survival skills as well. We have him wear his life jacket on the water too and watch what he does very closely. That's about all we can do as parents... none of this may have even helped you can never plan for something like this.

Damn shame
GodSpeed

My 11 year old is an excellent swimmer but he doesn't step foot on the dock unless he is wearing a life jacket. On the docks, there's lots of stuff to trip on and you just never know what can happen. My prayers to this family. No one should ever have to lose a child. Heartbreaking..

Last summer someone posted an excellent article about drowning, and the signs to watch for. It was a real eye opener, no yelling just a silent slip under the water.

Very devastating !

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Same for me as others above, grew up and live around all sorts of water. Everyone in my family (kids/cousins/grandkids, etc,etc) all have to go to swimming lessons each summer for many years until they pass a certain level to be able to be by the water for themselves.

Not only for themselves, but to also be able to know what to do in case they need to rescue someone else.

Very important for us.

As I always say, Play Hard, But Play Safe/Smart.

Just terrible...

We as adults also need to be careful around the docks, especially as we get older. Last year I had a buddy slip off the side of his 303 Formula up on the lift in his slip and he fell onto a dock box and then the walkway. Was really banged up and lucky he didn't hit his head and fall into the water. If no one is around, you can easily drown. I myself have fallen between my boat and the dock twice in the last couple years. With a boat and a lift in the slip there is not much room to come up in open water and there is plenty to hit your head on. We now try to have at least one other person around if we are going to be working on our boats or lifts at the dock. You just never know.

Be safe!

This is terrible RIP
Single biggest fear I have as a dock owner even though my kids are grown and my grandkid swims great AND has the lifejacket on all the time I still don't know what I would do if someone or their child drown while visiting. I don't think I could ever go back.