PHOENIX – On Monday afternoon, a Valley mother found her 2-year-old son floating in a backyard swimming pool near 113th Avenue and Indian School Road.
Phoenix firefighters arrived just minutes after getting the call, but sadly the little boy died.
“It took the units three minutes to respond. That is three minutes the child will go without oxygen. Let’s prevent that because you can save a life and those initial breaths and CPR truly, truly makes a difference on the outcome of the child,” said Phoenix Deputy Fire Chief Frank Salomon.
To get out that message, firefighters went out in the neighborhood, knocked on doors, and even stopped people in their cars reminding them about the importance of water safety.
“We cannot continue to have our children die in backyard pools. We’re leading the country in this tragedy,” Salomon.
Six children have drowned in Maricopa County, according to Children’s Safety Zone, an organization that works with local fire departments and hospitals to collect statistics on water-related incidents.
“Don’t live in a state of denial, don’t sit there and think this is only happening to other people. It can happen to you. And if you go interview the family this happened to yesterday, they would have never thought that their little 2-year-old would be dead today,” said Salomon.
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