Department director-general Datuk Seri Nor Hisham Mohammad said the statistics highlighted the importance of raising water safety awareness, particularly among children and teenagers.
“For children, the statistics show that drowning deaths involved those aged between zero and six, with 49 fatalities, while the seven to 19 age group recorded 322 deaths.
“This highlights the importance of constant supervision of children, especially when they are near or in water,” he told The Star.
Nor Hisham said 191 fatalities involved those aged between 40 and 59, while 97 were people aged above 60 during the same period.
He said a total of 1,020 drowning incidents were recorded from 2023 to August 2026, resulting in 1,001 deaths.
“Of the fatalities, 889 involved males while 112 involved females,” he said.
Rivers and irrigation canals were the most common locations for drowning incidents, accounting for 616 cases, followed by beaches with 249 cases.
Another 82 incidents were recorded at lakes and mining ponds, while 57 occurred at waterfalls and rapids, and 16 in culverts.
By year, 293 drowning incidents were recorded in 2023, followed by 279 in 2024 and 270 in 2025. A further 178 incidents were recorded between January and August this year.
Nor Hisham said although the overall number of drowning incidents had declined from 293 in 2023 to 270 in 2025, the issue continued to require serious attention, particularly when children were near bodies of water such as pools, rivers and lakes.
“Drowning incidents involving children commonly occur when they play, bathe or swim in or near water without constant adult supervision.
“Among the situations that frequently occur are children accidentally falling into pools, rivers, drains, ditches or water catchment areas,” he said.
He urged parents and guardians to ensure children were always supervised by adults and not allowed to play alone near bodies of water.
“The public is also advised not to underestimate the risks, even when the water appears shallow or calm,” he said.
To improve water safety awareness, the department is implementing various education and prevention programmes, including the Jom Belajar Renang programme, which aims to reach 50,000 students between 2026 and 2030.
A total of 19,616 students had participated in the programme this year.
In addition, 2,461 water safety awareness activities were conducted in 2026, involving 291,142 participants through talks, demonstrations and exhibitions.
Nor Hisham said cooperation between parents, schools, local authorities and communities was crucial to strengthening preventive measures, particularly in areas identified as high-risk.
“The department has conducted water safety programmes nationwide, involving school students and members of the public as target groups.
“This approach must be carried out collectively because drowning prevention does not depend solely on rescue teams responding after an incident occurs.
“It begins with public awareness, supervision and preventive action by communities in high-risk areas,” he said.
