10 Alarming Facts About Drowning

It’s one of our most primal fears: struggling in the deep, far beneath the water’s surface, with lungs aching for air. Drowning takes hundreds of thousands of lives each year, with a significant number being young children. While water exposure is a primary factor, there’s also a noticeable economic link. People in impoverished countries are far more vulnerable to drowning. In Bangladesh, 17,000 children lose their lives to drowning each year—that’s 46 children every day.

Here are 10 startling facts about drowning, from a lake that never releases its victims to a lifeguard party that turned tragic with bitter irony.

10. The Lake Where Drowning Victims Are Never Found

Nestled in the Sierra Nevada mountains, straddling the border between California and Nevada, Lake Tahoe is a popular getaway spot with a chilling secret. This vast and deep lake plummets to 501 meters (1,645 feet) in depth. During the summer, it’s a haven for swimmers, boaters, and water skiers. Yet, these thrill-seekers are unaware of the graveyard lurking beneath the water’s surface.

Anyone who has seen a crime show is familiar with the term “floaters”—bodies that are discovered floating on the water’s surface. In a typical drowning, the victim submerges and perishes, their lungs filling with water. As the body decomposes, bacterial activity creates gases, causing the body to rise like a cork. However, Lake Tahoe’s cold waters slow bacterial growth, and as a result, bodies rarely emerge to the surface. Due to the lake's high elevation—1.9 kilometers (6,225 feet) above sea level—divers cannot reach the depths they could in other lakes, leaving many missing persons unrecovered.

In 2011, a group of “mixed gas” divers, equipped with specialized gear that allows them to descend to 107 meters (350 feet), recovered the body of Donald Windecker, who had been missing since 1995. Windecker’s body was discovered at a depth of 81 meters (265 feet), preserved in frigid water—1.7 degrees Celsius (35 °F). The body remained in remarkably good condition due to the cold temperatures, which prevented bacterial activity. The number of corpses resting on the bottom of Lake Tahoe, left undisturbed since their last summer vacation, remains a mystery.

9. Fresh Water And Salt Water Drown You Differently

At first glance, it might seem like ocean swimming is far riskier than lake swimming, with crashing waves and dangerous riptides threatening to drag swimmers under. However, surprisingly, around 90 percent of drowning incidents actually occur in freshwater. The explanation lies in chemistry. Freshwater is more similar to our blood than saltwater. When inhaled, it enters the bloodstream via osmosis. This dilution of the blood causes cells to burst, which leads to organ failure. This entire process happens within two to three minutes.

Saltwater contains significantly more salt than human blood. When it’s inhaled, the body attempts to balance itself by drawing water into the lungs, thickening the blood. This takes considerably longer to be fatal, around 8 to 10 minutes, which provides a far better opportunity for rescue.

8. Delayed Drowning

In 2008, 10-year-old Johnny Jackson was playing in a neighborhood pool in Goose Creek, South Carolina, under the watchful eye of his mother. Johnny, who had autism and ADD, was wearing floaties but still managed to swallow some water. He coughed and sputtered, then seemed fine—just like any other child who’s been swimming. Afterwards, he showed no signs of distress in his breathing, though he did strangely soil himself. When they got home, his mother gave him a bath, and he went to bed.

Minutes later, she returned to check on him, only to discover him foaming at the mouth with his lips turning blue. Johnny passed away from cardiac arrest while on his way to the hospital. He had inhaled enough water to gradually deplete the oxygen in his body, leading to death in a condition called 'delayed drowning.' His heartbroken mother, Cassandra, shared, 'I never knew a child could walk around, talk, and have their lungs filled with water.' Though anyone can experience this, children are the most vulnerable. Pediatricians recommend seeking immediate medical help if your child shows symptoms like difficulty breathing, fatigue, or unusual behavior after swimming.

7. The Dead Sea

The Dead Sea, known for its extreme salinity that leaves its waters nearly devoid of life, is situated between Israel and Jordan and attracts many tourists. The common belief is that the high salt content (three times that of Utah's Great Salt Lake) makes it too dense for a person to drown. While it is nearly impossible to drown in the traditional sense, i.e., being completely submerged under the water, this is not entirely the case.

The buoyancy of the Dead Sea makes it difficult for a person to reach the bottom with their feet. However, if you end up face down in the water, it can be challenging to get yourself upright again. Even swallowing just a small amount of the salt-heavy water can be harmful, disrupting your body's electrolyte balance and becoming toxic. Those rescued from the sea may face a lengthy recovery, suffering from internal burns and chemical pneumonia. In severe cases, dialysis could be necessary.

6. Execution

Drowning has long been employed as a form of execution. Surprisingly, it was once considered a rather 'refined' method of capital punishment, typically reserved for women or the privileged. Although most countries banned this practice in the 17th century, it experienced a grim revival during two significant historical periods—the witch trials and the French Revolution.

In Salem and beyond, the way to determine if someone was a witch could be exceedingly cruel. One infamous method involved weighting a person down and casting them into the water. It was a lose-lose situation—a person was expected to sink and drown, while a witch, allegedly using dark magic, would float and face deadly consequences.

During the French Revolution, the sheer number of executions demanded innovative methods to carry them out quickly. While the guillotine was efficient, it could only handle one person at a time. The period from November 1873 to February 1874 was especially brutal, earning the title 'Reign of Terror.' Under the command of Revolutionary Jean-Baptiste Carrier, thousands of people in Nantes, France were executed on suspicion of supporting the monarchy. Priests were specifically targeted—stripped of their clothing, loaded onto barges, and drowned in a river that Carrier called 'the national bathtub.'

5. Drowning Looks Different In Real Life Than In The Movies

In films and TV shows, drowning is often depicted in a dramatic manner—the victim thrashing, desperately fighting to survive. However, reality is quite different from what we see on Baywatch. When people are on the verge of drowning, they enter a state known as the 'Instinctive Drowning Response.' Voluntary movements become impossible, and the person usually floats with their head tilted back, mouth level with the water. Their eyes may appear glassy or closed. The legs do not kick, and the arms stay close to the body. The body remains upright.

The Instinctive Drowning Response is so subtle that people often drown even when lifeguards and nearby swimmers are present. Experts advise closely monitoring swimmers, and if someone becomes still, you should question them to ensure they remain conscious. A person drowning won’t be able to respond or even grasp rescue tools, and they only have a few seconds before going under.

4. Mammalian Diving Reflex

At first glance, humans don’t seem to have any special adaptations to survive in water. Compared to other animals, we’re not very skilled swimmers. However, humans do possess an evolutionary trait that allows aquatic creatures like whales and seals to stay submerged for long periods: the mammalian diving reflex. When a person’s face comes into contact with water, several involuntary physiological changes occur, designed to preserve life. The airway closes, the heart rate decreases, and the capillaries in the skin and extremities contract, redirecting blood to the essential organs. This serves a dual purpose: keeping the organs oxygenated and protecting them from the rising water pressure. Unfortunately, this also reduces the strength in the limbs, making swimming harder.

This reflex is most commonly observed in drowning children. In fact, children have a better chance of recovery than adults. The colder the water, the better, as it slows the metabolism and induces a protective state similar to hibernation. Thanks to this reflex, children who have been submerged for several minutes have been revived with no lasting neurological damage.

3. Irony

You might think that a party for lifeguards would be the last place you'd have to worry about drowning. However, at a 1985 event in New Orleans, Louisiana, drowning is exactly what occurred. The gathering was meant to celebrate a summer without any drownings at the city's pools.

Around 200 individuals attended the event, with more than half of them being certified lifeguards. Additionally, four lifeguards were actively on duty when 31-year-old Jerome Moody tragically passed away. The exact moment he submerged remains unclear, but his fully clothed body was found in the deep end of the pool after the party was winding down and attendees were leaving the pool area. Despite attempts to revive him, resuscitation efforts failed. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death was drowning. The irony of the situation left many deeply disturbed, with the New Orleans Recreational Department Director stating, “The lifeguards were really upset. It’s a real tragedy. This was the first annual party in memory where they could celebrate a trouble-free season.”

2. Minorities Experience Higher Drowning Rates

Accidents, in general, are indiscriminate in their toll, but drowning disproportionately affects certain groups. In the United States, approximately 80% of drowning victims are male. This isn't due to any physiological differences but because men are more likely to consume alcohol and engage in risky water-related activities.

The situation is even more alarming for minorities. According to the CDC, African-American children are particularly vulnerable. Children aged 5 to 14 from African-American communities drown at nearly three times the rate of their white counterparts. The highest discrepancy occurs in children between the ages of 11 and 12 in swimming pools, where African Americans are 10 times more likely to drown than whites. This isn't caused by any physical disparity between races but by differing levels of exposure to water. Many African Americans live in urban areas, where access to swimming pools and swimming lessons is limited.

1. The Tragedy of Animals Drowning

Animals are often far more intelligent than we tend to realize, cleverly utilizing their surroundings to gain an advantage. Raccoons, with their distinctive 'bandit' masks, are charming, though sometimes troublesome. While they are generally not dangerous, they can be fierce fighters when threatened. These skirmishes typically occur with domestic dogs, some of which are large and strong enough to pose a real threat to the raccoon. However, the raccoon has a surprising strategy. When near water, this crafty creature will swim away, and if the dog follows, the raccoon will dunk the dog’s head under the water, trying to drown it.

In Australia, kangaroos employ a similar tactic to protect themselves from attacking dingoes. Otters, on the other hand, are known for their more sinister behaviors. They breed aggressively in the water, and occasionally, the female is drowned during mating. The males also attack young harbor seals, engaging in violent acts that result in their death. In a disturbing video, a group of otters can be seen attacking and drowning a monkey who had been taunting them at the Bronx Zoo.