Agency official says Florida recorded 1,739 child drownings (2009–2024) as state plan awaits approval

An agency official said Florida recorded 1,739 child drownings between 2009 and 2024 and urged a coordinated statewide approach as a water-safety strategy for the state awaits approval.

“I’m going to continue the work,” the agency official said, describing discussions with the National Child Fatality Review Board and a multi-year effort to develop Florida’s strategy. The speaker said the board indicated no other effort had been done "to your level," and the speaker and coworker Tina Morgan have led the creation of the strategy for roughly 2½ years.

The official tied the state effort to a national initiative, noting that the U.S. National Water Safety Action Plan, launched in June 2023, is a 10-year plan to reduce fatal drownings and directed each state to develop its own plan or strategy. The speaker listed other states that have launched plans in the last three years, naming California, New Jersey, New Hampshire and Hawaii.

On prevention steps, the speaker pointed listeners to watersmartflorida.com for guidance and recommended the National Drowning Prevention Alliance’s "Layers of Protection," a framework that emphasizes barriers and alarms, water competency training, supervision, life jackets and emergency preparation as complementary measures to reduce drowning risk.

The speaker said the Florida strategy is currently waiting approval for launch and implementation; they did not specify the approving body or a timeline for approval. No motions or formal votes were recorded in the transcript. The speaker repeatedly urged statewide coordination rather than siloed local efforts as the primary path to reducing fatal drownings.

The briefing did not include detailed budget figures, implementation dates, or the speaker’s formal role or departmental affiliation; the speaker identified only a coworker, Tina Morgan, as a collaborator. Next steps reported in the remarks were continuation of the speaker’s work and awaiting formal approval of the state strategy.