2024-08-14 03:17:58
A father recounted how his son drowned in Naha City on the 9th.
As the peak of the marine leisure season approaches, the number of drowning children increases. The father (43 years old) of an 8-year-old boy who survived drowning at Kinzhen Beach in Okayama Prefecture was interviewed by Ryukyu Shinho. She blamed herself, saying, “The image of my son struggling and swimming appears in my mind every night,” and called for thorough precautions, saying: “I don’t want anyone else to go through the same thing.”
I visited the beach in King Town for two days on a family trip. My son is 120cm tall. Unexpectedly, my son, who usually plays by the water, actually went into the sea. When I was packing my luggage with the sea on my back, my brother (11 years old) suddenly called out my son’s name. My son, who was about five meters into the water, could no longer stand and was struggling desperately. I rushed to him, picked him up, patted his back and made him spit out a lot of water.
Marine leisure facility staff responded quickly and reported the incident. My son was taken by medical helicopter to the Minami Prefectural Medical Center/Children’s Medical Center (Minamifuhara-machi). After five days in intensive care, he recovered.
I also worry about the damage my brother has done to my psyche. My brother and I both said: “The blue of the sea and sky of Okinawa disappeared.” He encouraged his brother and said: “He called me immediately, so I was saved.”
A flashback of the accident occurs. “If I had worn a life jacket, this wouldn’t have happened to me,” he said, repeating his regret.
On the other hand, I am also grateful for the Okinawan people I met. The doctor saved him by telling him, “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine.” After I was discharged from the hospital, I received a call from the doctor expressing concern about my brother’s mental health.
Before leaving Okinawa, she went around thanking beach workers and acquaintances who were concerned about her son’s symptoms. My brother said, “I want to come to Okinawa again,” which made me feel a little relieved.
I have a strong desire to prevent this from happening again. “Before I experienced this accident, even when I watched the news, it was all about people. Kids may not like life jackets, but it’s a parent’s job to protect life. I don’t want anyone else to feel the same way.”
According to the 11th Region Coast Guard Headquarters, as of the 8th, 54 people have been injured (12 of them fatal) in marine recreational accidents this year. That’s an increase of two people compared with the same period last year, when numbers were back to pre-coronavirus levels. Grouped by age, there were 10 minors, accounting for about 20% of the total, an increase of 6 compared with the same period last year.
(Nishida Yu)
1723696471
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