Cold Water Drowning
Spring starts the season when children fall through the ice; later in the year many adults drown while swimming or boating in Alaskan waters. Drowning is the second-leading cause of accidental death in Alaska
Cold is usually an enemy to life, but in some instances it is a friend. In recent years scientists have learned that people can be submerged in cold water for long periods without brain damage or other lasting harm.
In March 1975, an 18-year-old man was submerged in a freezing Michigan pond for 38 minutes. Declared dead, he was on the way to the morgue when he gasped and caused a diversion of the transporting vehicle to the nearest hospital. Two weeks later he returned to college and continued to be an A student. But two hours of resuscitation were required to bring him around.
The lesson is very clear. Rescuers should not give up when someone appears to have drowned in cold water. Resuscitation should be continued at least until the person's body comes up to normal temperature--hours may be required.
However, it is absolutely necessary for resuscitation to be started within a very few minutes after the victim is taken from the water. The reason is that a person plunging into cold water undergoes the "diving response." As soon as the cold water strikes the person's face, the diving response is triggered. It reduces the blood supply to the skin and most muscles and saves it for the heart and brain. A person comes out of the diving response when taken from the cold water, so speedy action is needed then.
The younger the person, the better the chances for survival. Newborn mammals are remarkably resistant to drowning, but as they grow older, their effectiveness in using the diving response decreases.
Doctors have found that relatives tend to give up too soon when a family member is thought to have drowned. The doctors explain this giving up as a result of guilt feelings about the apparent drowning. The moral is--don't give up--especially if the water is cold, as it almost always is in Alaska.
