The Kuwait Fire Force has renewed its appeal to parents and guardians to maintain constant vigilance when children are near water, stressing that most drowning incidents can be avoided with proper precautions. Brigadier General Mohammed Al-Gharib, director of public relations at the force, highlighted direct and uninterrupted supervision as the single most effective way to protect children from drowning. He cautioned against distractions such as mobile phones that could delay response in an emergency. Al-Gharib added that early swimming instruction builds confidence yet cannot replace close adult oversight at all times.
Approved life jackets should be used for marine activities or open waters, according to the director. Families received instructions to review weather forecasts and sea conditions before entering the water while avoiding rough or unstable environments that heighten risks for young children. Basic first-aid training for drowning victims enables immediate intervention that can save lives before responders arrive, Al-Gharib stated.
“The safety of children is a shared responsibility that begins with awareness and commitment to preventive measures,” Al-Gharib said, urging families to make water safety their top priority throughout the summer season. The force emphasized that children must never be left unattended near swimming pools, beaches or any body of water. Such simple steps can prevent many accidents during periods of increased recreational activity.
Kuwait Fire Force figures from its semi-annual statistical report for the first half of 2025 placed rescue incidents at 3,679, including 18 classified as drowning or corpse recovery operations. The same period saw 12 marine fires, illustrating the range of maritime emergencies the authority handles alongside its land-based duties. Previous years produced multiple child drowning cases, among them the 2022 loss of three siblings at Anjefa beach reported at the time by local outlets.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data identifies drowning as the leading cause of death for children ages one to four in the United States, with fatal incidents peaking in summer months. The World Health Organization has characterized global drowning as a serious and neglected public health threat that claims hundreds of thousands of lives annually, many of them preventable. Regional patterns in the Gulf mirror these trends as high temperatures drive greater attendance at coastal and pool sites.
