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In the United States, drowning is a leading cause of death for children between the ages of 1 and 4, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Less than two months ago, the youngest daughter of NFL star Shaquil Barrett drowned after falling into a swimming pool at the family's Tampa Bay residence. While police did not disclose the details surrounding the incident, they did confirm the 2-year-old girl's death was \"purely accidental.\"

Reed said he received an influx of calls for swim lessons after Barrett's family tragedy was made public. He said he hopes that as people enter the summer season, parents prioritize their kids' water safety.

\"This is an inevitable thing that as your child grows, you know you're going to have to do,\" he said of swim lessons. \"Treat this as a school, like you would for their education. It's even more important in a life-saving aspect.\"

Reed added that after a few lessons, the young girl who repeated the mermaid mantra is now swimming the length of her backyard pool.

@tritonaquatictraining MERMAID UPDATE! Look at this big girl swimming and loving it after just a few weeks! Crazy to think that just a few weeks ago we were in tears and scared! But we kept practicing our motivational mermaid mantra of \"I'm Big, I'm Brave, I'm Beautiful!\" and look how far we've come! I am one proud swim instructor! Thank you all so much for the love & support! 🥰🧜‍♀️🔱🧜‍♂️ #swimlessons #privateswimlessons #learntoswim #swimminglessons #survivalswim #survivalswimlessons #childcare #childpsychology #smallbusiness #smallbusinessowner #cutevideo #proudteacher #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #foryoupage #fypシ #viral #trending #fypシ゚viral #fypage ♬ original sound - Triton Aquatic Training

\"I'm one proud swim instructor,\" Reed captioned a video showing the girl's progress.

5 layers to keep kids safe around water

In addition to swim lessons, the National Drowning Prevention Alliance recommends parents practice five layers of protection to keep kids safe in the water.

Those five layers are:

1. Barriers and alarms, like fencing around pools and alarms on doors and windows that open to the pool so an adult is alerted when they're opened.

2. Supervision that is \"close, constant and capable,\" which is critical for water safety, according to the organization.

3. Water competency, meaning that both adults and children should know how to swim. The National Drowning Prevention Alliance recommends talking to your child's pediatrician about when to start water safety or swimming lessons.

4. Life jackets, which are necessary whenever \"on or around open and natural bodies of water and when boating,\" the organization states.

5. Emergency preparation that includes keeping a phone poolside to be able to quickly call 911 and learning and practicing how to perform CPR, according to the Alliance.

Editor's note: This was originally published on June 7, 2023.

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