Orange County 2013 Drowning Tally: 46 So Far, 22 of Them Fatal

“Children drown without a sound.”

The quote comes from Jamie Cockerill, an Orange County mom who almost lost her son in a pool drowning in July.

As of Tuesday this year, there have been 46 drowning incidents in the county, 30 children and 16 adults, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. Twenty-two of those were fatal, six children, 16 adults.

Perhaps the most attention-grabbing was a horrific incident in Rancho Santa Margarita, where a 3-year-old drowned at a beach club on the Fourth of July with hundreds nearby. He died the next day.

So the fire authority has started a campaign to spread awareness about the dangers and tips to avoid them. Division Chief Kirk Wells stopped by the San Juan Capistrano City Council meeting Tuesday to give the presentation his department is widely circulating around the county.

The Power Point talker includes a video of Cockerill of Tustin, talking about how she thought she did everything right: She taught her kids to swim, she has a gate around her pool, she supervises her children's play.

“But I’m also reading a magazine or looking at my phone,” she said. “Please don’t let my mistake be yours. “

Wells said California leads the nation in drownings, which can be prevented by following the ABCs:

Active adult supervision – this is kind of like a designated driver someone who pledges not to drink or socialize while children are near water

Barriers -- gates, gate alarms, motion detectors, water motion detectors, pool covers, adequate fencing that’s at least 5 feet tall and “non-climbable” to a child

Classes – learn CPR, first aid and rescue techniques