One of the inseparable attractions during kayaking is bathing in water, especially when the heat can be felt. Entering the water is always a threat that you should take into account! Water is a dangerous element that should not be underestimated!

The most common causes of drowning include:

Insufficient swimming skills – swimming is completely different in a pool than in a lake or river, where faster currents or water currents may occur. Then it’s easy to panic, which further complicates our already uninteresting situation.

Overstating your strength – even if we are excellent swimmers, everyone can have a bad day, a weakened body, can catch a spasm or many other surprises, it is impossible to predict all of them. There is nothing wrong with the fact that we want to try our hand and go to the island in the middle of the lake. All you need to do is ask a trusted person from our company for safety! It is enough for him to swim next to us in a canoe, and on the way back take us to the shore. You can even exchange and the belayer will float on the way back. It should only be remembered that the belayer should have at least as many places in the kayak or boat as there are belayers in the water.

Incorrect fun – many people forget that water is a dangerous element. Behavior such as flooding, pushing an unsuspecting person into the water from a bridge or bank, throwing a girl who is sunbathing calmly into the water can turn an innocent joke into a real drama.

Swimming under the influence of alcohol – this is one of the most common causes of drowning in our country. People at rest often forget that even a small amount of alcohol can be dangerous. You don’t have to be drunk at all, that alcohol weakens our balance, increases the risk of thermal shock, causes faster loss of strength, or distorts our judgment. Sometimes one beer is enough, many of you will say what a single beer is, but if you have to drink beer, it is best to do it in the evening after the rafting, when we are on the shore.

Jumping into the water – jumping into the water, especially on the “head” or, worse, the “Indian” (just like he has a head, except that his hands are laced from the back, not over his head), is extreme recklessness, through which every year, many persons suffer spinal injury in the cervical spine, which ends with either a four-limb paralysis or drowning if immediate professional medical assistance is not given immediately after the stroke. All you need is a log or an invisible boulder under the water, and that’s enough. Even the fact that twenty people jumped in front of us and nothing happened to anyone gives absolutely no guarantee. Within a quarter of an hour, the situation underwater may change, a piece of thicker edge may come and the tragedy is ready.

Thermal shock – prolonged exposure to the sun causes our skin to heat up quite strongly when we fall into the water during a dump or even jump into the water to cool off, we can cause a contraction of surface blood vessels, which in turn causes the blood to drain from deep vessels causing myocardial overload. Further consequences are brain hypoxia and consequent loss of consciousness. It should be remembered that thermal shock can occur even in people who are in full health and in great physical condition.

Excessive cooling of the body – this is usually the case when staying in cold water for too long. The first signs are goosebumps, muscle cramps. Next, we feel chills and cramps of the facial muscles, commonly called “teeth chattering”, the body acquires a bluish color, blood drains from deep vessels and blood pressure rises. Prolonged stay in this condition leads to unconsciousness due to fainting and drowning.

Muscle spasms – each of us has had muscle spasm at least once in our lives. A slight contraction can withstand, a strong contraction can prevent movement. There can be many reasons for cramps, but it is not the contraction itself that is the reason for drowning, but the panic we fall into when we are unable to deal with it. With leg cramps you can continue swimming, we finally have 3 other functional limbs and one stubborn is enough to swim on stubborn.

Cold currents – the most common mistake with cold currents is to try to escape as quickly as possible, the sudden rapid movement promotes the formation of cramps, which, as you already know, can be a direct cause of drowning. Instead, simply, calmly depart from this place towards the warmer water.

Swirls – are a serious danger especially for uncontrollable people who quickly panic. If we already know that we will avoid getting into the vortex, try to swim flat, close to the surface of the water, then there is a greater chance that the vortex will not take us. Being within the range of the vortex, we try to move away from its range faster, so as not to lose unnecessary forces, you should flow in accordance with the vortex rotation movement. If, despite everything, the vortex pulls us under the water, we should not try to stay afloat at all costs, we will quickly get tired, and the vortex will draw us anyway. It is safer to give in to the vortex. The vast majority of vortices reach no more than 5 meters. Reaching the day, we bounce our legs from the bottom towards the water current and swim to the surface beyond its reach.

Entanglement with seaweed – in the place where seaweed occurs, swim flat and avoid sudden movements, especially with your feet, do not swim with a frog. Once we get involved in seaweed, as with all situations described in this artyluke, do not panic. In such a situation you should turn on your back and slowly move to try to break free, when it does not help, let’s call for help. In swimming on the surface of the water is similar to diving, it is worth having someone within a few meters, in case of unforeseen situations will help us.

Remember every situation is a way out, provided that you keep calm and use common sense. If you are in trouble, common sense will help you get out of trouble without major complications, and when you use common sense before you find yourself in the water, the problem is most likely never dangers. You will also show common sense when, after reading this article, you share it on your wall, in this way you can save your friends’ life.