BE INFORMED, SAVE A LIFE AND YOURS

Sir,

The Nkoyoyo quarry dam are killing waters; an evil with or without a snake. Even Olympic swimmers struggle to swim and stay afloat in cold water temperatures like those of the Nkoyoyo quarry dam. 

Drowning is the number one cause of death in abandoned quarry sites like Nkoyoyo. Most people involved in this type of accidents went to a quarry for swimming. Quarries are extremely dangerous places to swim. Steep drop-offs, deep water, sharp rocks, flooded equipment, submerged wire and industrial waste make swimming risky.

The Nkoyoyo quarry dam might be small in size and less threatening in the eyes compared to large dams like Luphohlo, but you’ll be shocked to learn that the Nkoyoyo quarry dam is among the world most dangerous and prohibited swimming areas. A lot of countries including America, Canada, Britain and Zimbabwe have already passed regulations that quarry dams are no-go areas for swimming due to deaths caused by drowning.

Playground

Quarries are not a playground, and quarry dams in particular pose the greatest risk. They are often much colder than rivers, lakes and swimming pools as they can be fed by water sources that originate deep underground. A sudden plunge into cold water starts a gasp response, which can cause drowning within seconds.

The water can be really deep and may be shaded from the sun. It can be so cold that it would cause your muscles to cramp in minutes and make it very hard to breathe. With beautiful weather, people jump into quarry dams to cool off only to discover that they’re out of their depth, they get cramps and suffer from cold shock and really they’re in trouble. Cold shock causes the instinctive reaction to gasp and swim hard yet it is the greatest contributing factor to drowning.

If you jump into very cold water, like the Nkoyoyo quarry dam, there is a three-stage response your body will follow: 

l Zero to four minutes – cold shock – a sudden plunge into cold water initiates a gasp response which can cause you to drown within seconds of entering the water. It also affects breathing, heart rate and body metabolism.

l Four to 30 minutes – loss of performance – poor circulation causes stiff fingers reduced coordination and loss of motor skills and power. This makes it nearly impossible to grasp a rescue line. Swimming to safety or climbing out of the water is no longer physically possible. At this stage the cause of death is drowning.

lMore than 30 minutes – hypothermia. 

And another important factor to know is that the Nkoyoyo quarry dam is not fed by rainwater but an inflow of cold groundwater. This groundwater inflow can keep the quarry water very cold even in late summer. Jumping or falling into cold water can be fatal even for a young healthy person. So, snake or no snake; the Nkoyoyo quarry dam remains a stone-cold killer, therefore people should stay away from it. 

Awareness a

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