Coast Guard airman Noah Evermann may be working to join the ranks of rescue swimmers who dive from helicopters to save people floundering in the water, but that doesn’t mean others should dare it, he told 10 fourth-graders last week.

“Reach or throw, don’t go,” he said. It was one of the cardinal rules of water safety taught to Lewis and Clark Elementary School’s fourth-grade students last week during their second session of a program at the Astoria Aquatic Center.

Over a month and a half, the 9- and 10-year-olds will also learn how they can assist lifeguards during an emergency, how to handle a cramp while swimming, what to do when someone is struggling and how to protect themselves in a variety of water bodies.

Three classes attend Tuesdays and a different three on Thursdays. A handful of aquatic center staff and Coast Guard rescue swimmers teach each session.

The lessons are essential for children living in Astoria, said school Principal Craig Hoppes. In addition to the Pacific Ocean and Columbia River, the area boasts lakes, falls and plenty of swimming pools. “These skills are specific to the region,” he said.

Teachers Gayla Hollaway and Diana Lilley agreed.

“We have water all around us,” said Hollaway. “And even if you don’t have water around you, swimming pools are a popular place for kids to be. This class gives them an edge, safety-wise. And these are life skills they can use anywhere.”

“This is something we hope is preparing them for a situation they may find themselves in,” Lilley added. “And to have experts teaching something in the field, rather than having students sit at a desk, they are thrilled to get that instruction in the water.”

Each year, as many as 1,500 children die of drowning in the United States. It’s the second leading cause of death for those younger than 14, following injuries suffered in car accidents, according to the National SAFE KIDS Campaign.

Many of those children were untrained and unsupervised, according to the Oregon SAFE KIDS Coalition, the campaign’s Oregon affiliate. Most of the accidents occur when children are unattended or during a short lapse in supervision. It takes only a few seconds for a child to slip below the surface, and it takes only two minutes before they lose consciousness.

Older children, in particular, might overestimate their swimming abilities or underestimate the water’s depth, according to the state agency. They are also more likely to swim outdoors, at “open water sites,” rather than pools with lifeguards, SAFE KIDS s reported.

But what are some of the local risks?

Nicole Stacey, a water safety instructor, said children should be aware of undertow currents in the ocean, uneven ground, sneaker waves and rip tides, as well as frigid temperatures. The Columbia River is also cold, and its current is strong, she added. Each body of water has different risks and different depths, she said, and changing weather can also pose danger.

In addition, there could be hazardous objects to contend with, such as posts jutting above the river’s surface, said Stacey.

On hot summer days, Astoria children might walk along riverside train tracks to a trestle near Alderbrook, which offers its own summer swimming spot, dubbed “stinky beach.” When they leap from the bridge into the lower Columbia, they risk slipping or slamming into the wooden structure. They could land on pilings, and they might not realize how close the bottom is if they jump during low tide.

In July 2005, a 12-year-old Astoria boy died when he was pulled out to sea by a rip tide. He had been body-surfing in hip-deep water at Clatsop Spit, at Fort Stevens State Park in Warrenton.

In August 2004, a man died at Fort Canby State Park in Ilwaco, Wash., trying to save his son, who was rescued by a bystander.

And during that same summer, a 14-year-old Astoria girl died trying to save her 10-year-old brother as he sank in a Columbia River channel near Knappa. Two adults saved him, although one was nearly pulled under as the boy panicked.

“Even the best swimmers can drown in our river,” said Stacey. “A lot of times, kids panic and make the situation even worse. We teach them to find something that will float or something to use to grab the person.”

“Education is key” to preventing deaths from drowning, said Kevin Dorn, manager of the Astoria Aquatic Center.

“Drowning remains a major cause of death for children under age 14,” he said. “It’s important we continue this program.”

Now in its third year, the program began when the Astoria School District stopped providing swimming lessons for fourth-grade classes, because they were too expensive and absorbed too much classroom time, said Hoppes, Lewis and Clark principal.

Supervisors have been ironing out the program’s kinks since then. Now, students stay with one instructor rather than cycling to different stations throughout a session. That has been a major improvement over previous years, according to instructors.

“Last year, it was almost more chaotic,” said Stacey. “Moving between stations took a lot of time, and students didn’t get as much free time to practice the skills they learned.”

In addition to “look before you leap” and “reach or throw, don’t go,” the students will learn how to stay afloat in their clothes, exhaling into shirts or pants with the ends tied off to improvise flotation devices. It’s one of Stacey’s favorite sessions.

And although she had a particularly “tough” group during a recent class, she doesn’t mind working with the wild ones. For those children especially, water safety is a valuable lesson, said Stacey. “Those are exactly the kind of kids you want to teach this stuff to.”