An average of 56 people drown in Hawai'i each year, said Galanis, of the Injury Prevention and Control Program for the state Department of Health. Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional death for Hawai'i children age 17 and younger.

Jim Howe, operations chief of the city's Ocean Safety Division, said children need to be constantly supervised around any body of water.

"We see a lot of parents who get caught up in the festivities" and sometimes lose track of children, Howe said. "We see tragedy happen on some of these occasions."

Some of the families at the beach on Friday's unofficial start to the long holiday weekend already were thinking safety.

Grace Johnson, of Pauoa, took two daughters, ages 6 and 11, along with a 7-year-old niece to Ala Moana Park.

While the three children played in the water, Johnson sat nearby in a chair under a tree, close enough that she could see them and they could hear her.

Staying safe at the beach • Never swim alone. • Never allow children to swim alone or even be around water without supervision. • Designate a responsible adult to serve as "water watcher," one person whose sole job is to constantly watch the children. • Always swim at beaches with lifeguards. • Never go out farther than you can swim. • Know your limits — if in doubt, don't go out. • Talk to lifeguards about ocean conditions before you go into the water. • Pay attention to the warning signs; they are there for a reason. • If you see someone in distress, call for a lifeguard or dial 911. • Slip, slap and slop! Slip into a shirt, slap on a hat and slop on sunscreen to protect yourself from the sun's harmful rays. Source: National Safe Kids Campaign and City and County of Honolulu's Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services Division

But she said she understands how families with children can get distracted at "safe beaches" like Ala Moana. She recalls a family gathering at Ala Moana during which a whole group of kids swam out to the reef while the adults barbecued across the street.

The adults noticed one of the girls, a niece, was struggling to stay afloat on the swim back in.

"My brother jumped in and pulled her out," Johnson said.

Adrien Dilliner of Manoa took her 4-year-old son, Jonah, to Ala Moana on Friday. She said she chooses beaches that have lifeguards and other families around. And she keeps an eye on him to make sure he stays close.

Galanis said men and boys are more likely to be drowning victims, outnumbering women and girls by more than 4 to 1, he said.

About 80 percent of recent victims drowned in the ocean, with the rest drowning in swimming pools, freshwater streams and elsewhere.

Galanis said more than one-third of the saltwater drownings in Honolulu were linked at least partly to personal factors, such as illness, most often heart attacks. Other contributing factors included alcohol and drug use, which turned up in 16 percent of the victims in tests done by the city medical examiner. Galanis said methamphetamine was the most commonly screened drug.

He said that city Emergency Medical Service data showed that drownings and near-drownings were more likely to occur on weekends (38 percent); to men and boys (69 percent); in the ocean (79 percent); and during the summer (32 percent).

As might be expected in an island state with weather that allows year-round swimming, Hawai'i has one of the higher drowning rates — fifth-highest in the country, he said.

Galanis said residents still outnumber visitors as drowning victims in general, but not by much. For example, from 1998 to 2002, 160 residents died from drowning compared with 120 visitors.

Howe expected the holiday weekend to keep his lifeguards busy. By 10 a.m. on July 4 last year, Howe estimated more than 99,000 people had crowded O'ahu beaches.

"It's typically the top busiest day of the year in attendance," Howe said.

As a longtime lifeguard, Howe has some straightforward advice: "When you go to the beach, be aware of the beach and its conditions."

That means check the waves. What's the wind direction? Is it onshore or offshore?

"The bigger the waves, the stronger the currents. The more offshore the winds, the more powerful the waves," he said.

And don't be fooled: "Small waves do not mean safe beaches," Howe said.

He said some studies he's worked on show that 90 percent of serious injuries happen when the surf is three feet and under.

With surfing experiencing a new wave of popularity, Howe said that lifeguards noticed a relatively new problem last year — inexperienced surfers inspired by movies going out in surf that challenges the pros.

"It's what my supervisors are calling the 'Blue Crush' effect," after the movie of the same name, Howe said. "People that never surfed before going out to surf for the first time at Pipeline."

Howe cautions those who learn about surfing from movies and TV to realize "that image from Hollywood is not real, it's fantasy."

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.