Philadelphia Boy Drowns In Public Pool
Drownings are tragedies, no matter who they happen to; drowning deaths of children are particularly devastating. On July 18 in Philadelphia, a seven-year-old boy drowned in a community pool, and died two days later in hospital. Jabriel O’Connor was visiting the Cobbs Creek Recreation Center pool, with a large group of children and adults. He couldn’t swim and was not wearing a life vest when he got into the pool.
Four lifeguards were watching the pool, which had more than 25 children in it at the time; no one noticed Jabriel drowning. He was found unresponsive at the bottom of the pool around 1 pm, and rushed to a local hospital, where he was placed in critical care. The boy never regained consciousness, and died within two days.
Unfortunately, this is not a rare tragedy. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which monitors pool-related drownings, injuries, and entrapments involving children, reports there are more than 390 pool-related child drowning deaths and 5,100 pool-related child injuries annually. More than 75% of the reported pool-related-drowning incidents and injuries involve children under the age of 5 years old. And the majority of drownings, 85%, happen at residential or private pools, where there are no lifeguards.
“Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death for children between the ages of 1 and 4, and minority children drown in pools at an alarming rate,” said CPSC Chairman, Inez Tenenbaum. The agency has just started its fourth annual Pool Safely campaign, a national public education campaign aimed at reducing drowning among children. The CPSC has published some safety tips for parents and guardians:
First, never leave a child unsupervised in or near a pool—drownings happen fast. Backyard pools should be fenced-in so that children are prevented from accessing a pool without the assistance and supervision of an adult. Children must wear approved life vests whenever they are in or near a pool—inflatable swimming toys and flotation devices are not enough help in a drowning situation. After everyone’s done using the pool, take all the toys and flotation devices out, so children are not tempted to reach for them. The adult supervising the pool should know CPR, and have rescue equipment and a telephone nearby in the event of an emergency. Always remove the pool cover completely; children can become entrapped under the pool cover and drown. Practice “touch” supervision with all children under the age of 5; this mean an adult stays within an arm’s length of a child at all times while in and around a pool. For more information, parents and guardians can visit www.poolsafely.gov or www.cpsc.gov.
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