92 drownings in the past twenty-five years.4 Whether it be boating, kayaking, fishing, or just walking near the river. Part of the issue behind the plethora of drownings surrounding these dams is the continued encouragement of risky activities. Specifically kayaking in the whitewater rafting community. The website Americanwhitewater.org gives many spots where thrill seekers can kayak throughout the nation, and one of these is the Batavia dam. The Batavia dam, a known hotspot for kayaking, is extremely dangerous. Although the website warns of the dangers surrounding a hydraulic dam, American Whitewater claims that “this area holds very little risk.” Something which is known to be untrue from the history of drownings at the dam. The website lists the “River Features,” which sound more like amusement park attractions than possible death traps.5 Sites like these encourage inexperienced kayakers to go and try their luck at these features in order to get an adrenaline rush, contributing to the ever-increasing death toll in the river. Along with the numerous cases of accidental deaths from boating, fishing, and kayaking, other cases of drownings exist, mainly with small children falling into the river. These cannot necessarily be blamed upon the river or the dams but instead upon the parents who did not keep a close watch on their children near a body of water. In fact, more children aged one to four die from drowning than any other cause of death.6 Two of the ten cases studied dealt with drownings for children under the age of four. Surprisingly, within both cases, occurring just over one year from one another, the victims were not at the river but wandered there from different locations.78 There is 4 Cosier, Susan. “After a Century of Being Dammed up, Illinois Rivers Get to Go with the Flow.” NRDC, March 7, 2022. https://www.nrdc.org/stories/after-century-being-dammed-illinois-rivers-get-go-flow. 5 “American Whitewater,” American Whitewater, accessed November 13, 2022, https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/view/river-detail/4297/main. 6 “Drowning Data,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, October 7, 2022), https://www.cdc.gov/drowning/data/index.html. 7 “Boy, 3, Drowns in Fox River in Algonquin.” Chicago Tribune, April 19, 1962. https://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/image/374801196/?terms=fox%20river%20drownings&match=1. 8 “Fox River Drowning.” Chicago Tribune, March 27, 1961. https://www.newspapers.com/image/374800302/.
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