Drownings in U.S. and Mexico Spark Safety Concerns

A series of fatal drowning incidents occurred in late July 2025 across the United States and Mexico, involving victims of various ages. In Mérida, Yucatán, a two-year-old girl drowned in a private pool, prompting investigations and calls for improved pool safety measures. In the U.S., reported incidents included a 52-year-old man who drowned in the Columbia River in Vancouver, a 21-year-old international worker who died paddleboarding in Anchorage, and a 23-year-old man who drowned in Smithville Lake, Missouri. Other fatalities involved a man who disappeared after using a rope swing on California's Russian River, a fatal boat crash on Lake Superior, and a drowning in Oregon's Clackamas River. Authorities in both countries are investigating the incidents and urging heightened water safety, supervision, and use of life jackets. Community leaders and officials have renewed calls for public awareness and preventive action.