Child Drownings Trouble State Officials

HOUSTON (AP) _ Child drownings in Texas have reached 50 with the death of at least seven kids. That puts the state on pace for a new annual record before summer has officially even started.

One of the recent drownings was that of a five-year-old girl at Lake Bryan

Texas set a record last year with 82 drownings, the highest since the state began keeping track in 2005. The average number of drownings each year is 70.

Patrick Crimmins, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, says the agency is very concerned as summer officially begins today. The agency said many recent victims didn’t appear to be adequately supervised.

According to state figures, there were 66 children who drowned in 2005, 70 in 2006 and 63 in 2007.

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