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UK Inland Water Statistics
Data compiled from the UK Water Incident Research Hub dataset 1997-date. Find out more about our methodology. Inland water is defined as including lochs, canals, lakes, rivers and quarries. The data reported are for accidental water incidents and exclude suicides and incidents in water bodies on residential premises.
UK INLAND WATERS
40,000+ lakes in the UK
The UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology has indexed over 40,000 lakes in the UK
UK has 1,500 rivers
The National River Flow Archive operated by the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology reports that there are just under 1,500 rivers in the UK
11,073 miles of UK coastline
Ordinance Survey have measured the UK coastline to be 11,073 miles long
UK has 478,000 garden ponds
The UKCEH Countryside Survey in 2007 estimated that the UK has around 478,000 garden ponds
There are on average around 120 inland water fatalities per year in the UK and accounts for more than half of the UK's drowning burden
There were 819 (51%) accidental drownings in inland waters out of a total of 1,616 accidental drownings across the UK between 2015-2020. c.120 drowning fatalities in inland waters per annum in the UK.
315 fatalities and 44 non-fatal incidents in inland waters archived on UK WIRD
There are 315 drowning fatalities and 44 non-fatal incidents in UK inland waters archived on the UK Water Incident Research Hub.
WHO IS DROWNING?
Men and boys are 3.7 times more likely to be involved in an inland water incident than their female counterparts
295 of 359 inland water incidents (87%) involved males; 61 incidents involved females.
Almost half of inland water incidents affect 13-25 year olds
In a sample of 369 inland water incidents, 78 (21%) were 0-12 years old, 100 (27%) were 13-18 years old, and 56 (15%) were 19-25 years old.
Disproportunately high number of ethnic minority groups are involved in inland water incidents
At least 60 of 269 inland water incidents (22%) involved a person from an ethnic minority group compared with 10-14% of the population over the same period.
People with disabilities account for a small number of inland water drownings
35 of 359 inland water incidents (9%) included a person with a disability compared with 22% of the population with a disability.
Students overrepresented
54 of 280 inland water incidents (19%) involved students over 18 years old, compared with just 4% of the UK population
Lower socioeconomic groups are overrepresented in inland water incidents
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, at least 56 (35%) were from the bottom three socioeconomic groups with only 6 (4%) from the top three socioeconomic groups. Groupings according to ONS NS-SEC.
Inland water drowning almost exclusively UK citizens
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 161 were UK citizens.
WHERE ARE PEOPLE DROWNING?
Most inland water incidents occur outside of cities
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 36 (22%) occurred in cities and 126 (78%) occurred outside of cities.
Very high affluence offers some protection against inland water incidents
There was no relationship between median wealth per county and inland water incident rates. Incidents according to median income were as follows: 39 (24%) <100k, 38 (23%) 101<150k, 36 (22%) 151<200k and 19 (12%) 201<250k.
Significant number of inland water incidents still occur on private land
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 61 (38%) incidents occurred on private land, 2 (1%) on residential land, and 99 (61%) incidents on public land.
Majority of inland water incidents occur at local landmarks
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 81 (50%) occurred at local landmarks and attractions which are well known to residents.
The majority were around people when they drowned
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 108 (66%) were around people known to them and 28 (17%) were near strangers when the incident occurred. Only 21 (13%) were completely alone when they drowned. In 5 (3%) cases, the persons around at the time the incident occurred were not reported.
WHEN DID PEOPLE DROWN?
Incidents peak between June and August
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, incidents occurred in the following months: 27 in June, 43 in July, and 27 in August. This is compared to only 30 between November-March.
The weekend accounts for a disproportionately high amount of inland water drownings
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 59 (39%) occurred on a Saturday or Sunday. 26 (44%) weekend incidents occurred between 07:00-18:00. 20 (34%) weekend incidents occurred between 18:00-07:00.
Inland water incident rate peaks during hot weather
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 47 (29%) incidents occurred when the air temperature was over 20 degrees Celcius compared to only 11 (7%) incidents when the air temperature was below 10 degrees Celcius.
WHY DID PEOPLE GET INTO DANGER?
The reasons for entering the water are multi-dimensional
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 17 (10%) entered to rescue a pet/person, 90 (55%) entered intentionally, 72 (44%) entered unintentionally including 4 (2%) who entered because of violence or threats. 25 of 45 (55%) non-swimmer entries were intentional.
Alcohol and drugs are not involved in most inland water incidents
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, alcohol and drugs were reported as being involved in only 20 (12%) cases. Student drownings are overrepresented in inland water drownings involving alcohol and drugs.
The majority had never entered the water before at this location
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 92 (56%) had never entered the water at this location. 18 (11%) had entered the water at this location on at least one previous occasion. In 52 cases, it wasn't reported whether the casualty had entered the water at this location before. Whilst it appears most had never entered the water at this location before, the data is not yet clear on whether this has a material effect on outcomes
Most inland water casualties could swim
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 110 (67%) were reported as being able to swim. 45 (28%) were reported as non-swimmers and in 7 (4%) cases swim ability was not reported.
Nearly all were not wearing a personal floatation device when they drowned
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, only 7 (4%) were reported to be wearing a personal floatation device when they got into danger.
Nothing visually unusual or adverse about the water conditions in most cases
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, there was nothing visually unusual or adverse about the water conditions in 128 (79%) cases. Adverse conditions were reported in 26 (16%) cases.
Swimmers most likely to get into difficulty because of cold water shock
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 110 (67%) were swimmers and 58 (53%) of those swimmers became submerged within minutes of entering the water due to cold water shock.
A significant number of incidents involved two or more people
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 52 (32%) involved more than one person with 110 involving only a single person. The rescuer became a casualty in 15 (28%) incidents involving two or more casualties. 44 (27%) rescuers were unable to rescue the casualty. 22 (14%) persons did not enter the water to perform a rescue.
WHY DID SOME DIE FROM DRONING?
Survival rates are very low even for those rescued promptly
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 56 (34%) were rescued from the water, the bodies of 103 (64%) were recovered, and the bodies of 3 (2%) were never recovered. Of the 56 who were rescued, 21 (38%) were breathing normally, 5 (9%) were considered deceased, and 29 (51%) were given CPR by bystanders. Of the 29 given CPR, only 4 (14%) survived.
Submersion of more than three minutes is almost always fatal
In a sample of 162 inland water incidents archived on the UK WIRD, 29 were rescued and given CPR. Of those 29, 19 had been submerged for more than 3 minutes and 18 were fatal. Of those 29, 6 incidents involved submersion of fewer than 3 minutes and 2 (33%) resulted in survival. Submersion duration was not reported in 4 of 29 cases.
