Mum shares how armbands don’t guarantee your child’s safety in terrifying video
Emily Brown
A mum's video has gone viral as it demonstrates exactly why parents shouldn't rely solely on armbands to keep kids safe while swimming.
The summer holidays are fast approaching, and for a lot of children that will mean hours spent in the pool or the sea, splashing around and getting in some swimming practise.
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While a lot of hotels come equipped with shallower pools for kids, many parents will be preparing to watch their kids as they venture into deeper waters, and relying on armbands to help make sure their children stay afloat when their feet can't touch the ground.
Armbands are a great way to help children while swimming, but mum Katya İleri proved they shouldn't be the only thing that parents rely on when she shared a video of a friend chucking their young daughter into the sea.
In the clip, which has been viewed millions of times, the man could be seen holding the young girl over the edge of a boat before letting her drop into the water below.
She was wearing armbands, which would in theory have helped her quickly pop back up to the surface - if they didn't slide off her arms as soon as she hit the water that is.
The video quickly came to an end, with Katya sharing it with the jokey caption: "A bit of history of today's vacation."
Her post was met with a lot of comments from shocked viewers pointing out how the armbands weren't reliable, with one writing: "A perfect example of a product design getting worse through the years. When I was a kid, water wings would graft themselves to your arm."
The armbands might have been fine if the young girl had been swimming around with her arms more flat against the water, but the force of the jump was obviously enough to push them off - and since kids love jumping and splashing in the water, it's definitely a warning to other parents.
Though a lot of people were shocked by the post, Katya has assured that her daughter was absolutely fine after landing in the water.
Addressing the concerned comments, she wrote (translated): "The daughter was happy and wanted to jump with the children herself. The armbands fell off because they slipped on the sun cream. She is already swimming and swam herself."
Katya went on to explain that the daughter's dad was 'in the sea at the time of the jump', and that the youngster had grown up by the sea and was 'constantly in the water'.
When it comes to taking children swimming, The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents advises the constant supervision of children, and to be vigilant of changes in the depth of the water.
It also stresses that it is not sufficient to rely solely on the supervision of lifeguards in the area.