The Lifesaving Society has been researching and reporting on
drowning and preventable water-related deaths for each province and
nationally since 1990. This research provides a comprehensive fact
base on the drowning problem to guide the Society and others in
developing drowning prevention solutions.
The drowning research process involves data collection, research
tabulation and analysis, and development of reports. A data
collection form and process is used to extract the water-related
deaths data from the offices of the Chief Coroners and Medical
Examiners in each province. The scope of this research:
- Collects the data needed to profile victims of aquatic
incidents, including the circumstances and contributing factors
under which these incidents occurred.
- Includes all deaths in each province and Canada overall
resulting from incidents "in, on or near water"; "near-water"
incidents were included if the incident was closely related to
water-based recreational, vocational or daily living activity, or
if the presence of water appeared to be an attraction contributing
to the incident.
- Includes only preventable (unintentional) deaths. It does not
include deaths due to natural causes, suicide, or homicide.
Drowning Reports
Drowning is serious threat. Hundreds of thousands of people
drown every year. Population projections mean that the problem is
going to get worse, especially in developing countries.
Counting victims does not save lives or reduce drowning - but
understanding the magnitude of the problem and identifying the risk
factors does allow lifesaving organizations to provide effective
prevention actions to the highest risk populations, locations and
activities.
View the 2017 Canadian Drowning Report.
View the 2017 Maritimes Drowning Report.
View the 2016 Newfoundland and Drowning
Report.
Read the WHO media release and read or download
the Global Report on Drowning: Preventing a Leading Killer.