Lisbon, July 10, 2025 (Lusa) - More than 50 children and young people died from drowning in Portugal between 2020 and 2023, according to data from the Association for the Promotion of Child Safety (APSI), which, together with the national guard, is running a Drowning Prevention Campaign.

In a joint statement, APSI and the National Republican Guard (GNR) recalled the campaign, which began on 16 June and ends on 30 September, which aims to raise awareness among families of the importance of safety rules to be observed around water, particularly on beaches, rivers, dams, swimming pools and tanks.

According to APSI data, between 2020 and 2023, 55 children and young people died from drowning (14 in 2020, 12 in 2021, 19 in 2022 and 10 in 2023, according to figures from the National Statistics Institute).

Nineteen of the children who died from drowning were aged 4 or under, four were aged between 5 and 9, eight were teenagers aged between 10 and 14, and 24 were young people aged between 15 and 19.

According to APSI data, which is based on cases reported in the press, swimming pools are the place where most drownings occur, especially private pools.

"In general, the number of deaths and hospitalisations of children and young people following drowning has decreased in recent decades - from 28 to 10 in the case of deaths and from 49 to 10 in the case of hospitalisations (2002 and 2023 respectively)," says APSI.

However, between 2020 and 2023, the average number of deaths by drowning per year rose to 14 (when 7.3 was the average for the previous three years).

"This fact, combined with the higher number of fatal and non-fatal drowning cases reported in the press over the last five years, seems to indicate, contrary to what had been happening, a trend towards an increase in the number of deaths by drowning," the Association said.

APSI also notes that in cases referred by the emergency phone line 112 to the ambulance service, which include diving accidents, there was an increase in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

In 2024, APSI recorded 12 cases of drowning reported in the press, seven of which were fatal.

"The cases reported in the press in the last five years, particularly those with a fatal outcome, were higher than in previous years. This may indicate an increase in fatal drowning cases in recent years," the report states.

DD/AYLS // AYLS

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