The overwhelming loss of life from Tropical Storm Ketsana on 26 September 2009 in the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia
could have been reduced if the population had been equipped with survival swimming,
lifesaving and water safety skills, said the International Lifesaving Federation.
Initial reports suggest many of those who lost their lives
died in the flooding which resulted from the tropical storm.
The elderly and children were particularly at risk.
According to the UN statistics 241 people died in the Philippines, and 41 in Vietnam.
Seeing whole families floating on top of house roofs or cars, being swept down raging rivers,
reinforces the need to prepare for such events.
Many lives were saved in Vietnam,
after the situation in the Philippines triggered disaster preparations.
People moved to evacuation centers and higher ground.
The lack of survival swimming education highlights a problem of epidemic proportions
in many parts of Asia and the Pacific.
"Unlike in developed countries where survival swimming, lifesaving and water safety
are considered an essential part of community education and are widely publicised,
most communities across Asia even in coastal areas have never had the opportunity
to learn basic survival swimming skills,"
International Lifesaving Federation Child Drowning Chair Justin Scarr said.
"With the Philippines experiencing around 20 typhoons a year affecting millions of people,
and Vietnam being similarly affected by tropical storms and typhoons,
survival swimming, lifesaving and water safety skills should be an essential life skill.
