The Sylas Project is a non-profit dedicated to raising water safety awareness, providing nation-wide survival swim scholarships to families in need, and reforming swimming pool legislation to keep all children safe. We exist to save one child at a time.
We are dedicated to raising water safety awareness, providing nation-wide survival swim scholarships to families in need, and aim to reform swimming pool legislation in Florida to keep all children safe. We exist to save one child at a time.
Our kids are always glued to us. We never think they will be out of our sight. Drownings are silent. It takes 20 seconds before they’re unconscious. 5 minutes before permanent brain damage. Over 5 minutes will likely lead to death or severe neurological damage.
Florida drowning deaths are the highest in the nation with over 1.1 million swimming pools. The U.S has over 10 million pools. Our children are at the highest risk of unintentional drowning.
Toddlers and young children are experts at momentarily escaping adult supervision. Among those ages 1-14, fatal drowning remains the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death following motor vehicle crashes.
These pool safety preventative measures can save our children's lives. Just like you cannot leave the hospital without a carseat when your baby is born, all homes with swimming pools MUST have a physical barrier in place any time a child under the age of 5 is in the home. The more layers of protection in place, the better.
Install a permanent 4-sided fence with self-locking gates. This is the only physical barrier between your pool and your child.
Pool alarm systems can notify you the second the accident occurs, giving you just enough time to react.
Make sure all doors and windows leading to the pool are locked and alarmed.
Don’t let our children be another statistic. Help pass the SYLAS ALEXANDER GATLYN ACT to prevent more drowning tragedies in children. Legislation and awareness can close the gaps our babies needs to be protected in their own homes.
SB 1826The Sylas Alexander Gatlyn Act requires a swimming pool at a residence that has a child younger than 5 years of age residing at the residence must have a physical barrier that meets the requirements of this section in place any time the child is present at the residence and the pool is not being used or cleaned.
Read SB 1926 Bill