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Water Safety
According to the records of the Centers of Disease Control and Injury Prevention between 2005 and 2009 (http://www.cdc.gov) there were an average of 3,533 fatal unintentional drownings (non-boating related) annually in the United States - which amounted to about ten deaths per day. An additional 347 people died each year from drowning in boating-related incidents and about one in five people who die from drowning are children from under the age of 14. The US is not one of nations which is ranked on the top of the list from the countries most prevalent to drownings but statistics from other nations are also discouraging. For example, Greece rates among the first nations in drownings in proportion to its population. Between 1980 and 1999 over 5.704 people drowned, which amounts to about 570 drownings per year (http://www.pame.gr/ygeia/news/ellada-pnigmoi.html). Although drownings were reduced to 215 drownings reported in 2005, 290 reported in 2006 and 302 in 2007, an increasing trend begin to reappear. One in ten of those drownings are children and 80% of all drownings are of males. Despite the increase in lifeguard supervision in many beaches drownings continue; what needs to be more seriously addressed is water safety awareness to the general population and continuous feedback on safety rules and regulations. AHF will strive, through networking and media exposure, to increase water safety awareness initially within its base country -Greece- and through further collaborations, internationally.

Pool Safety and First Aid
The controlled environment of a swimming pool has been one of the major contributors to overall drownings. In the United States nine people drawn every day in swimming pools, some of which are also life-guarded. Pool Safety rules and regulations are often times not taken seriously into consideration, and as drownings are usually silent and take place within minutes, the risks in and around the pools are inherent. In communities were, swimming pool water safety awareness was increased in combination with CPR and first aid training, drownings and deaths from drowning dropped considerably. Most all of swimming and aquatic teaching foundations are nowadays making considerable efforts to promote world wide swimming pool and small pool aquatic safety safe practices. AHF will be supporting their efforts and will in addition contribute to pool water safety practices by providing more information, news and advances, through this section.
Section Administrator:
Iro Bezourgianni: iro.bezourgianni@gmail.com

Open Water Safety
All types of open water exposure, from swimming, to surfing, boating, river rafting and any type of activity in outdoor water bodies is inherent with risks and unpredictable situations. Risks can be created by dangerous marine life, from currents and tidal flows, from exhaustion, from hypothermia or hyperthermia, from collisions with piers, docks, boats, kayakers and surf skis and many other situations.
Open water swimming races have been continuously increasing and the golden rules for race directors, that there be no blind spots along the course, and a pair of eyes potentially on every swimmer at every point in the race, cannot be understated especially when even in major events in the past we've had losses of lives.
This section will deal with open water swimming safety matters, and how to raise awareness on practices that will safeguard those who engage in sports and activities in seas, oceans, rivers and lakes.
Section Administrators:
Aris Mavropoulos, MSc, Email: mavropoulosaris@gmail.com
Vrettoula Ploumidou, B.A. Email: vploum@gmail.com

Child Water Safety
Child water safety deserves a lot of attention for two reasons: Firstly, many fatalities and unintentional drownings occur to children from one to four years of age, and secondly because good practices and water safety awareness is better implemented and incorporated when taught at very early ages.
In this section you will be informed about:
- how you can protect your children from all possible dangers, around and inside the water
- health related issues concerning exposure to the sun and the dangerous impact of solar radiation
- water quality, infections and viruses that a child can be exposed to and
- how to use protective measures to avoid the ill effects of any threat.
Section Administrator:
Irene Papakonstandopoulos, B.A., M.D. Email: irenepapakon@hotmail.com

Aquatic Safety Legal Issues
This section will present current laws and regulations that apply nationally and internationally on:
a) Lifeguard requirements for pools and beaches,
b) Duties of Lifeguards in pools and beaches,
c)Duties of Aquatic Industries,
d) Necessary Water Safety Equipment,
e) Legal Lifeguard shifts and time schedule,
f) Obligatory sites for AEDs,
g) Legal coverage for people using AED’s,
h) Private Swimming Pool Administration,
i) Responsibilities and Requirements of Private Pool owners,
j)Lifeguard supervision during pool parties.
The aim of this section is to promote communication between professionals and the governing bodies of aquatic centers and public beaches, so that the best water safety preventive measures are implemented, to minimize the losses of life in the aquatic environments.
Section Administrator:
Iro Bezourgianni: iro.bezourgianni@gmail.com