Toddler drowns in condo pool

| 19/07/2011

(CNS): A two-year-old boy drowned in a swimming pool Monday, police have reported, and the toddler’s 68-year-old grandmother is currently in intensive care following her efforts to try and save him. The police said that the child and elderly woman were found in the pool at the George Town apartment complex in the afternoon by the boy’s young sister. Police received a report at around 5:20pm that the child and an elderly female had been found in the swimming pool at Town and Country Townhouses, George Town, both were unconscious and unresponsive. It appears that the young boy got into difficulties in the pool and his grandmother jumped into assist him.

The alarm was raised by the boy's 9-year-old sister who found her brother and her grandmother in the pool. Police and paramedics attended the scene, CPR was carried out and both were conveyed to the Cayman Islands Hospital, George Town. The little boy was pronounced dead on arrival and his grandmother has been admitted to intensive care.

Police stated that enquiries into what took place are ongoing but an RCIPS spokesperson said that all indications were that this was a tragic accident with what appeared to be no suspicious circumstances.
 

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  1. Lin Tibbetts says:

    My heartfelt sympathy is expressed to the family of this young toddler during their tragic loss.  I wish a speedy recovery to the heroic grandmother who tried to save the toddler, risking her own life.

    May you be comforted in the words of David's  23 Psalm:

    The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadth me beside the still waters.  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will feel no evil: for thou art with me: thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.  Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; thou anointest my head with oil: my cup runneth over.Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

  2. Anonymous says:

    I was so deeply saddened to hear of this tragedy. My heartfelt condolences go out to the family. I also hope the little girl (big sister to the toddler) can find some healing after the traumatic incident of finding her grandma and baby borther in the pool.  My heart goes out to her, she is a very sweet girl.

    Town & Country = = = PLEASE put a fence around your pool. I have been there often to swim with friends who live in that complex. You've needed a fence and more so now the reason why has been shown.

    My prayers for the whole family, friends and community for this tragic loss of a young life and I also pray his grandmother will recover.

    • Anonymous says:

      It's a bit late to put a fence up now.  What about all the other complexes that don't have fences around the pools!  Maybe they should check the door locks so that the children cannot get out or make sure that they are looked after properly so that they can't sneak out and fall into the pool.

      • Anonymous says:

        IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO PUT UP A FENCE! What about the other young children at the complex? What about the young children that may move in, in the future?

        And what about the other complexes? I was not commenting on any other complex. I was commenting specifically on this one. You can go out and rally for other complexes should you wish.

        I was also not commenting on checking door locks etc. My comment is that this complex should put up a fence. Period. XXXX

         

  3. Anonymous says:

    Deepest condolences to the family.  Hope the Grandmother makes a speedy recovery.  God Bless you all during this terrible time.

  4. Anonymous says:

    My sincere condolences to the family of that young child and may the grandmother have a speedy recovery. God Bless

  5. nauticalone says:

    This is so very sad! My most sincere condolences to the family.

  6. Anonymous says:

    You should teach your children to swim as soon as you can.  They can be in the water at five months and swimming by the time they are two!

  7. I Care says:

    May God be with the family during this very hard and difficult time. I am sure he is in God's hand . I also Pray for the Grand Mother that all goes well ,she will take this very hard knowing her efforts to save the child. May God Bless and keep

  8. Anon says:

    Anyone who have children know how quickly a young child can move out of your sight – it seems they are where you can touch them one second and they are someplace else in the next second. I pray for comfort of the Holy Spirit for the entire family.

  9. Anonymous says:

    May the child rest in peace, wherever he may be. I´m sure he will be greatly missed. My sincerest condolences are with the family.

  10. Robyn says:

    In most countries, it is the law that ALL pools have Safety Fences around them regardless of whether there are children in the house.  It's time that the Government brought this country in line with the 21st century!!  Dreadful accidents like this can be avoided!  

    My sincerest sympathy to the family of this dear little soul, and I so hope his grandmother recovers.

    • Anonymous says:

      It weakens your case when you exaggerate. It is not the case that most countries have laws that require pool safety fencing. For example, only a handful of states in the U.S. require it and there is no federal legislation. Relatively few places in Canada require it.  Australia stands out as one of the relatively few countries that do.

    • Anonymous says:

      I have difficulty accepting that your initial statement is statistically correct. Perhaps you mean most "first world" non-island countries.  I mention non-island because we have considerable extents of ironshore bordering deep water, potentially at least as hazerdous as swimming pools. If we are going to effectively deal with this issue I think it is important that we realistically evaluate the risks in the Cayman context rather than taking a copycat approach. No offense intended, and I hope none is taken.

  11. Anonymous says:

    Some of us may have woken up this morning thinking we were having a bad day, imagine the pain in this family, a young baby gone, a grandmother critical, a young child exposed to finding her grandmother and brother in this way. Everyday all of us choose and avoid things that can change our lives in a second and some of us are not so lucky and tragic accidents happen, this is not the time to scold, give thanks for how your day will finish and comfort and remember those who are not so fortunate

    My love and sorrow to this family

  12. Anonymous says:

    My deepest sympathies goes out the mother and grandmother. I wish the grandmother a speedy and safe recovery and I hope your precious son/ grandson meet you both in heaven one day. I hope the warm smiles which use to radiate your face will return soon!

    I have a two year old and they are busy,it’s no fault of theirs that just how they are built so there is no room to point fingers. At this time, I hope the healing can happen for your family.

    I hope your family finds comfort in God as I know you’re a family of God for many years.

    God bless each and everyone of you.

  13. Anonymous says:

    My heart breaks for this family.  Let this be a time of learning while we grieve.  It is never too early to teach your child to swim.  If you have a pool everyone must be able to swim.  If they can walk, make sure they can swim.  God be with the Grandmother and all the family.

    • Anonymous says:

      You are absolutely right. I have a two year old who I have just started with swim lessons. He is my joy and delight. If something like that happened to him, God forbid, it would devastate me.  

      • Anonymous says:

        One case like this just amplifies the reason why it is so important that every child in this country have access to swimming lessons. The Coaches at the Lions Pool do an incredible job, but that 25M pool is just not big enough. With a bigger pool and more coaches, more of our youth can learn to school both in the Learn to Swim and afterwards as they get older. Swimming is not just for fun. It is not just for exercise.It is not just for compeition and it is not just for scholarships. It is a life skill that we must provide all our children with. Surely with all that government is doing right now it can find someone to build that 50M pool making swimming lessons accessible to all?

        Prayers for comfort and blessing on this family during this incredibly sad time.

  14. Anonymous says:

    My deepest sympathy to the family.

  15. Anonymous says:

    My deepest sympathy to those affected by this tragedy.   My thoughts and prayers are with you in this time.   May the good lord help you though this.  Bless!

  16. LCW says:

    I cannot imagine your pain my friend.  I pray that the God of all comfort will send his peace over you.  Now is not the time to point fingers and blame; people are hurting..badly. Time and unforseen occurences befall us all. I hope your Mom recovers soon.

  17. Rob says:

    I am very sorry to hear this. My deep condolences to the family.

  18. Michel says:

    My sincere condoleances to the parents, families and friends. My prayers are with you all. Michel lemay

  19. Jolene says:

    As a mother of young children this cuts deeply and I cannot imagine the pain this family is dealing with. What an indescribable loss, my heartfelt sympathies go out to all the family and friends whose lives will be forever changed. My prayers for the grandmother and as another poster mentioned, I pray she will not carry this guilt and will realize it was an accident she did her very best to avoid. I am so sorry for your loss.

  20. Anonymous says:

    My deepest sympathy to the family. I can not begin to imagine your pain.

     

  21. Anonymous says:

     

    I’m a mother of a two year old boy and I completely sympathize with the parents who lost their child. I am so saddened by this very tragic event that I held on to my son soooo tightly last night as I can't imagine life without him. Hope the grandma recovers soon and doesn't blame herself for what happened. Lord, when will we hear good news?

  22. God Bless his Little Soul says:

    My sympathy to the mother and grandmother during this difficult time. May his grandmother recover and may she realize this was just an accident. I have a young son and I also own a pool and everyday I am on pins and needles when I am at work. May his soul RIP

  23. Dred says:

    There are no words. I am a father of a 10 month old boy and I would not even want to imagine the pain. I would die a million times if this happened to me.

  24. Ken P says:

    My prayers and thoughts are with the parents and families of the drowned child. I hope that the grandmother makes a healthy recovery and find peace in knowing that she tried to save him and it was an accident.

  25. Beachbay meatballs says:

    My deepest condolences to the family.

  26. Charm says:

    That sounds like something that could happen to me.  I emphatize with this family and a pray for comfort for them.  I am a grandmother that have a pool, I cannot swim and I have grandkids.  Whenever they visit which is quite often, I am on needles.  During their visit I am either watching all four grandkids or I sit and  watch the pool.  I also have two tubes in the pool to assist me in case I have to jump in there to assist my grandkids. We put all these measures in place but it sometimes can never be enough when we have children who have wandering feet.  My thoughts and prayers go out to parents and grandma.

    • Loopy Lou says:

      Maybe you should learn to swim as otherwise you cannot safely look after your grandchildren in or around the pool.  Sometimes tragic accidents like the present one are virtually unpreventable.  But from what you described you are currently a very dangerous liability to your grandchildren.  Let's us hope this terrible accident might let you see how dangerous your behaviour really is.

      • Anonymous says:

        To the unidentified "LOOPY LOU"

        XXXX

        CNS: Loopy Lou is not commenting on today's accident or those involved but is responding to the comment and offering a sensible warning to the original commenter. 

        • Charm says:

          I do not know who came to my defense.  But guess what? I do like Loopy Lou. I am the grandma who cannot swim and Loupy sounds just like me (always giving stern advise).  I do not think anything was wrong with Loupy's advise, so please leave Loupy alone. Just that I will never learn how to swim because the only water I like is the rain, shower or drink.  However, on another note, whenever we want to beat-up somebody or put down each other, let us all find a corner, kneel and pray and let us all get together and see how we can financially assist this poor mother and daughter to bury her toddler and mom.   Have a nice day.

    • Anonymous says:

      Don't worry Granny, you don't have to be able to swim to help someone in distress in a pool. Can we have some of the swimming coaches weigh in here with some advice on this? Most public pools have a hook stick that you can use or you can use a towel and kneel down to reach someone. Instinctively they will grab this lifeline if they are still moving. You can teach children to reach for the side of the pool and pull themselves along to the steps or a ladder before they can swim really well.

      Please note that I am not criticising the family here, if my only child drowned, I don't think I would survive it. Perhaps some advice from coaches could save another family from this most terrible of situations. Parents should never bury their children, it should always be the other way around.

  27. Anonymous says:

    That is so sad. I feel sorry for the grandmother and mother. My sincerest condolences.

  28. Anonymous says:

    THis is the saddest news I've read in a while.  My heart goes out to the family of this little boy.

  29. Anonymous says:

    Though no words can bring complete comfort…my sincere sympathies to the family, and I pray for complete physical and mental recovery for the grandmother.

    In my prayers, and God Bless!

  30. Anonymous says:

    What a tragic accident.  So sorry for their loss.

    • Anonymous says:

      As a grand mother of a two year old I was devastated to hear this sad news. I cannot get this out of my mind. I am sosorry for mother and other relatives, but even more for the grand mother. If this is any consolation you all can see him again when Jesus comes as all the little ones will be in his Kingdom. Again all of us Caymanians are hurting with you.