El Paso Toddler Nearly Drowns in Backyard Swimming Pool Labor Day Weekend

A near fatal drowning accident of El Paso toddler underscores the ongoing need to be particularly vigilant when children are near bodies of water, including residential swimming pools. Indeed, most child drowning accidents occur in backyard and apartment complex swimming pools in the state of Texas.

The three-year-old evidently fell into a residential swimming pool at around 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 4, 2021, during the Labor Day holiday weekend. Fortunately, an adult or adults were quick to the scene and were able to rescue the toddler from the water. The child was taken to an area hospital for observation. Current reports are that the child will fully recover and is not expected to experience any long-term physical consequences from the near drowning accident.

Near Drowning Accident Underscores Basic Safety at Residential Swimming Pool

The El Paso drowning accident underscores the basic safety requirements when a home has a swimming pool on site. These include:

• Never leave children alone in or around a residential swimming pool.
• Constantly, closely watch children who are in a residential swimming pool or playing near such a body of water.
• Make sure an adult is within reach of a child in the water.
• Adults with a residential swimming pool should be trained in water safety and CPR.
• Residential swimming pool area must be secured by fencing, self-closing and latching gates, gate alarms, fence perimeter alarms, pool deck alarms, and water surface alarms.
• Completely remove pool cover when pool is in use.
• Make sure entry way from residence to pool area is secure when pool is unattended.

Essential Water Safety Tips for Inside the Home

In addition, parents and other adults need to mindful of water safety tips to protect children inside a residence as well. These include:

• Never leave small children by themselves near any type of container of water. This includes:
  • Toilets
  • Bathtubs
  • Bathroom sinks
  • Kitchen sinks
  • Aquariums
  • Mop buckets
• Keep bathroom doors closes
• Secure toilet lids with childproof locks
• Never leave an infant or toddler in a bathtub unattended, even for a matter of seconds

Public Pools Closing, Private Pools Remain Open

Most Texas public pools will be closing after the Labor Day weekend. With that said, many if not most residential swimming pools will remain open and operational into the immediate future (if not longer). A good many apartment complex pools will remain open beyond Labor Day as well. Thus, children remain at risk if proper safety precautions are not maintained.

Texas Child Drowning Death Facts

The grim bottom line is that nearly all child drowning accidents in Texas and elsewhere are preventable. There have been 65 child drowning deaths in Texas in 2021 as of the Labor Day weekend. Aquatic safety experts maintain that nearly all – if not all – of these deaths were preventable if basic safety precautions were in place.

Another alarming statistic involves the age of children who lost their lives in Texas drowning accidents. 70 percent of the children who drowned in 2021 have been under the age of five.

Your Legal Rights in a Drowning Accident Case

If you or a loved one have been injured in a drowning accident resulting from someone else’s negligence, or if you’ve lost a family member in that type of aquatic accident, The Doan Law Firm at (800) 349-0000 is here for you. You can connect with our drowning accident lawyer hotline 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, including on all major holidays.

With 40 offices across the United States, with multiple offices in the state of Texas, we can schedule an initial consultation with a drowning accident lawyer at your convenience. A virtual appointment can also be arranged online. There is never a charge for an initial consultation with a Doan Law Firm drowning accident lawyer.