Parenting: Drowning doesn't look like drowning

June 1, 2011 (WPVI) -- This past weekend, a beautiful three-year-old girl drowned in a neighborhood swim club in Delaware Country.

It was Memorial Day weekend. The pool was crowded, lifeguards were on duty, but no one saw little Joanie Logan slip under the water until it was too late. A friend of mine administered CPR, but the little girl was already gone.

How could this happen with so many people around? It is a heartbreaking reminder of how quickly a child can drown and how quietly it can all happen.

Drowning can be easily overlooked, according to water safety expert Mario Vittone, since it is not the violent, thrashing, calling for help that most people expect.

"There is very little splashing, no waving, and no yelling or calls for help of any kind," explains Vittone. "To get an idea of just how quiet and undramatic from the surface drowning can be, consider this: It is the number two cause of accidental death in children, age 15 and under (just behind vehicle accidents)  of the approximately 750 children who will drown next year, about 375 of them will do so within 25 yards of a parent or other adult. In ten percent of those drownings, the adult will actually watch them do it, having no idea it is happening (source: CDC)."

In most circumstances, drowning people are unable to call for help. The mouth of a victim is alternately sinking below are reappearing above the surface, not enough time for them to exhale, inhale and call out. They usually can't wave for help since their arms are pressing against the water in an effort to lift their mouths out of the water to breath.

"Sometimes the most common indication that someone is drowning is that they don't look like they're drowning," says Vittone. "They may just look like they are treading water and looking up... One way to be sure? Ask them, 'Are you alright?' If they can answer at all - they probably are. If they return a blank stare, you may have less than 30 seconds to get to them. And parents - children playing in the water make noise. When they get quiet, you get to them and find out why."

In a crowded pool, in a social setting, it can be easy to lose track of a child. But, the death of 3-year-old Joanie Logan is a painful lesson on how important it is to keep your eyes on your youngster constantly.

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