the weather was nice enough this weekend for many of us to hit the beaches or a local pool and one New Jersey lawmaker is urging the legislature to support a bill that will require schools to teach swim safety as part of the state's curriculum it comes as another tragedy hit the Jersey Shore during the holiday a 15-year-old drowned while swimming in the ocean in Monmouth County Advocates say simple water safety lessons can save lives Melissa Rose Cooper has the story last year we had about 28 drownings in the state which was actually low for New Jersey we want to make that zero we want to make that number zero and assemblyman Sean King says increasing water safety awareness is the first step to making that a reality he's sponsoring a bill that would require school districts to make water safety a part of their curriculum for kids in grades K through 12. one of the catalysts for this bill was some of the deaths that we've had in Bradley Beach 2011 we had a young person pass away from drowning every year it happens the latest drowning happening just over the memorial holiday weekend after officials say a 15 year old was swimming along Sandy Hook Beach according to the CDC it's the number one cause of death for children with one to four-year-olds dying as a result of drowning more than any other cause of death drowning is an epidemic in our country they mentioned the numbers the statistics are there and we found the Cure The Cure literally is swim lessons if a child takes swimming lessons it reduces that risk of drowning by almost 90 percent three-time gold medal Olympian Rowdy Gaines stressing the importance of water safety he says parents are often the first line of defense eighty percent of drownings happen in front of an adult we live in an age of this Smartphone and and a drowning can happen in as little as 30 seconds it can take longer but in as little as 30 seconds so it is it's as easy and as tragic as somebody going to answer the door or check the laundry or send a text last week the assembly passed a joint resolution designating the third full week of May as drowning prevention week for children Advocates say it goes beyond learning how to swim it's about that water Watcher it's about the quality of the environment that you have do you have the right equipment on hand if there is a problem do you have access to First Aid tools do you know who to call if something happens these are all things that new homeowners are taught by their Builders are handed off information on that it's really important that you respect that this beautiful paradise you've built for yourself has responsibilities that that come with it it can be the best thing that you do come to the beach on the Jersey on the Jersey Shore on a day like today there's not much better I mean it's amazing it's beautiful it's relaxing it's fun it's exciting but just like anything else you would do that that can be fun and exciting you've got to respect the environment that you're in so always have a qualified supervisor for your children that means someone that can make a save should they need to and just be aware it only happens in a second drowning is not like you see on TV there's no one holding their hand up and counting down it's silent it's surreal and it only happens in a couple of seconds assemblyman Keen says this water safety bill has bipartisan supports but is facing some criticism I know there's some pushback in Trenton because they believe that's a mandate and we don't have any mandates my opinion is we have this many mandates in Trenton every school district is required to incorporate so many different aspects into their curriculum I think this one is a no-brainer and we're going to keep at it until we get it done a necessity Advocates say will prevent future tragedies allowing more people to enjoy the Jersey Summers and Waters for NJ Spotlight News I'm Melissa Rose Cooper [Music] [Music]