A new survey from Poolonomics showed that 15.5% of all Kentuckians cannot swim in a national survey.
The national survey was composed across the entire United States, with over 16% of respondents stating that they could not swim. 61.8% of those respondents who said they could not swim were women, while 38.2% were men.
Kentucky landed 21st out of all 50 states, sitting between Nebraska (15.3%) and Vermont (15.6%). According to Poolonomics, the data revealed no significant correlation between coastal proximity and swimming proficiency.
“The findings of this survey should serve as a wake-up for our nation,” said Rick Patterson, Founder of Poolonomics. “Water safety is a fundamental skill, and the fact that nearly one in six American adults lack this ability is deeply concerning. It’s so important that we do something to address this issue and prevent tragic drowning incidents.”
New Jersey had the lowest percentage of non-swimmers at 8.6% of all respondents while Alaska ranked last, at 25%, or one out of every four respondents from Alaska stating that they could not swim.
This article appears in May 22 – Jun 4, 2024.