Corps Rangers: Reach, Throw, Row, Don't Go!

By Travis November, Crooked Creek LakeAugust 6, 2012

Corps Ranger shows how to fit a life jacket
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Rangers teach water safety at YMCA day program
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Children practice throwing water safety rescue bags
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On July 30, Crooked Creek Lake Park Ranger April Hawkey and Student Park Ranger Travis November presented a water safety program for a day camp at the Richard G. Snyder YMCA located in Kittanning, Pa.

The camp consisted of about 40 children ranging in ages from 6 to 12 years old. The topic of the program was personal flotation devices (PFD) and water safety. The kids had the opportunity to try on PFDs and learned how to properly fit their life jackets.

The Corps of Engineers rangers also taught the children about rescue techniques when someone is drowning. They had a chance to toss a water safety throw ring and a water safety throw bag at a cone that represented a drowning victim. This reinforced the motto the children were taught that day: "Reach, Throw, Row, Don't Go."

Each participant received a bag of water safety materials to remind them to be safe around the water.

More information about "Reach, Throw, Row, Don't Go can be found online at http://www.army.mil/article/51402/

(Photos courtesy of Richard G. Snyder YMCA, Kittanning, Pa.)