Three-year-old boy dies tragically in Rather See: bathing accident shocks Cologne

Three-year-old boy dies tragically in Rather See: bathing accident shocks Cologne

On June 21, 2025, a tragic swimming accident occurred at Rather See in Cologne, in which a three-year-old boy lost his life. At around 3:10 p.m., other bathers discovered the child lifeless under the water. Unfortunately, the resuscitation measures that were initiated immediately could not prevent the boy from later dying in the clinic. The police, who initially reported that the victim was a girl, quickly clarified that it was a boy. The criminal police have started investigating this suspected swimming accident. Meanwhile, the fire brigade looked after around 30 bathers present and looked after the child's badly shaken parents, who were taken to their daughter in the ambulance. At the time of the accident, the lake was heavily visited and the accident left deep scars.

This tragedy sheds light on the increasing number of swimming accidents in Germany. According to the German Life Saving Society (DLRG), a total of 411 fatal accidents in water were recorded in 2023 - a worrying increase of 31 deaths compared to the previous year. This is the third increase in the number of drownings in a row and for the first time since 2019 the numbers are over 400. DLRG President Ute Vogt is concerned and emphasizes the need to make people aware of the danger in water, especially in the upcoming warm season.

The worrying statistic

The DLRG states that 48 percent of fatal swimming accidents occur in the summer months from June onwards. What is particularly alarming is that most deaths occurred in inland waters, such as lakes and ponds, where a total of 146 people drowned in 2024. In North Rhine-Westphalia, the state with Lake Rather, 57 people died while swimming. Another worrying trend is the increasing number of accidents caused by health problems when jumping into the deep end, especially among older people and those with previous illnesses.

Another point from the DLRG that should be urgently addressed is the fact that around 20 percent of children leave primary school without learning to swim. In addition, more than half of elementary school students cannot swim safely. The DLRG plans to use campaigns to make parents with small children in particular aware of the dangers in water and to emphasize the importance of swimming lessons in indoor pools. Especially in times when many public swimming pools are threatened with closure, learning to swim is becoming an indispensable skill for children.

The terrible incident at Rather See has alerted the public to the dangers of water and is an urgent appeal to all parents to pay attention to the safety of their children. We hope that such tragedies can be avoided in the future and ask all bathers to be careful and prevent dangerous situations while bathing.