Video: Safety tips for those spending more time in backyards
Jul 20, 2020 06:23AM ● By EditorWatch the WDIO-TV report here
By Emily Ness of WDIO-TV - July 19, 2020
There is nothing better than the backyard in the summer and this year, families have been spending even more time in their backyards as a result of the pandemic. As a result, officials are stressing important safety tips.
As far as pools are concerned, children should never be left unattended.
"Any depth of water could be dangerous—especially for the real little ones so it’s really important to be out there with them and make sure they know how to swim, especially if they haven’t done swim lessons in the past,” Captain Pete Johnson of the Spirit Valley Fire Station said.
As for fire pits, officials recommend keeping them a safe distance from buildings and trees, watching over them and properly extinguishing them. Johnson said that in the City of Duluth, fires should be not more than three feet wide and no more than three feet tall.
The flames of a grill can also be dangerous, so people should make sure their grill is on a stable surface and keep it outside rather than storing it in a garage.
“If you’re using a charcoal grill, those things put off a ton of carbon monoxide and we’ve had people pull those into their garages to get them out of the weather at the end of the night where they’ve still got hot coals in them and they’ve come close to having a bad incident of CO poisoning,” Johnson said.
Officials also stress the importance of drinking plenty of water, wearing sunscreen and knowing the basics of CPR.
“We have to take all of the precautions to stay safe and keep everybody else safe when we're out enjoying the weather,” Johnson said.
To read the original story and see related reporting, follow this link to the WDIO-TV website. https://www.wdio.com/duluth-minnesota-news/backyard-safety-warm-weather-pandemic/5799728/?cat=10335
