70% of drowning deaths in King county involved drugs or alcohol

Open water safety

After five consecutive years of preventable drowning deaths staying at historically high levels, King County officials are urging the public to be cautious at rivers, lakes, and Puget Sound in advance of the Fourth of July.

A preliminary analysis by Public Health – Seattle & King County indicates there were 30 preventable drowning deaths in King County in 2023. That annual estimate has been steady since 2019 when the number of preventable drownings nearly doubled from the previous year.

River safety

Experts say the trend is the result of multiple factors: 

• warmer air temperatures in spring and early summer when open water remains dangerously cold, 
• a nationwide shortage of lifeguards, and 
• inequitable access to pools and swimming lessons. 
• They also noted that in the past five years, 70% of King County preventable drowning deaths involved drugs or alcohol.

“Experts from several of our King County departments have identified actions each of us can take to reverse the alarming rise in drownings in recent years,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “We need the public’s help to save lives this summer. It starts by being aware that rivers and lakes in our region are much colder and more dangerous than they appear."