Child Drowning Averted: Heroic 9-Year-Old Boy Saves Baby Sister from Drowning in Mesa, AZ — Said He Learned CPR from Watching TV (video)
Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on April 18, 2011
The weather is becoming nice, which regrettably means more preventable child pool drownings - a 9-year-old boy in AZ saved his baby sister from drowning in his grandparents' pool this weekend
The weather’s been extremely warm and pleasant this week in Arizona and other states, and with that nicer weather, the warnings to parents about keeping a never-straying eye on children and the dangers of swimming pools cannot be overemphasized.
An amazing story about a little boy who saved his baby sister from drowning yesterday at his grandparents’ home in Mesa, Arizona. The calm heroism of this 9-year-old boy performing CPR on his toddler sister before emergency paramedics arrived is especially noteworthy, because he’d not ever been formerly trained to perform CPR, but said he knew what to do “from watching TV.”
Sadly, other children were not so lucky this past weekend in the state — two others died on Saturday in separate pool drownings. Our prayers go to the parents, family, and friends of these children.
Watchful diligence around water should not be limited to toddlers or pre-schoolers. One of the victims this weekend in Arizona was 7 years old.
Parents, these gut-wrenching stories of child drownings can be avoided. NEVER, EVER let a child be near a pool or any other body of water without diligent watching. Taking your eyes off a small child for “just a minute” can often result in a child falling into the pool and within a short time, drowning or suffering irreparable brain damage. Make sure all pools are fenced and gates securely locked. It only takes a few seconds to be sure that pools are off limits to kids — and only a few seconds for life-altering tragedy to strike.
You never think it could happen to you. Change that thinking. Change it.
What could have been another child drowning tragedy in Arizona this weekend was miraculously averted because of a quick-thinking little boy who saved his baby sister.
Update: News video of interview with 9-year-old hero Tristin Saghin.
From UPI, Boy, 9, saves drowning toddler sister:
LAS VEGAS, April 18 (UPI) — A 9-year-old Las Vegas boy who saved his 2-year-old sister from drowning in a Mesa, Ariz., pool learned what to do on TV, a fire department official said.
Both children and their parents, whose names have been withheld, had traveled from their Las Vegas home to visit the children’s grandparents in Mesa, The Arizona Republic reported.
On Sunday, the toddler wandered unseen into the pool and was spotted a few minutes later on the pool’s surface until pulled out by her mother. The 9-year-old son began life-saving procedures on his sister.
“He said he learned it from watching TV,” Capt. Forrest Smith, a Mesa Fire Department spokesman said, adding it saved the toddler’s life.
Neighbors said they heard screaming and came to assist, one of them being a certified lifeguard who said the toddler was breathing by the time she arrived at the home, the newspaper reported.
From ABC 15 News, FD: Boy performs CPR on drowning sister in Mesa:
MESA, AZ – Fire officials say a 2-year-old girl is recovering Sunday afternoon after her brother performed CPR on her when she nearly drowned in Mesa.
According to Mesa fire spokesman Forrest Smith, the girl fell into her grandmother’s swimming pool around 9 a.m. near Sossaman and Guadalupe roads.
Smith said the girl’s mother found her floating in the pool and pulled her out. Her 9-year-old brother started to perform CPR, saying he knew it from watching television.
“When she was first taken out of the water, she was barely breathing,” Smith said. “By the time she got to the hospital, she was crying, which is good news.”
The girl was transported to Cardon Children’s Medical Center in serious condition. Officials say she is expected to be OK.
The victim and her family were in town from Las Vegas, Nev. visiting their grandmother.
From AZCentral.com, Mesa boy saves sister’s life after toddler falls in pool:
A 9-year-old boy saved the life of his 2-year-old sister Sunday after she had fallen into their grandparents’ Mesa pool, fire officials said.
The little girl and her family had traveled from Las Vegas to visit their grandparents’ home in the 2600 block of South Athena, said Capt. Forrest Smith, a Mesa Fire Department spokesman.
The toddler somehow got into the pool, and for a few moments, the family didn’t know where she was. The mother spotted her on the pool’s surface and pulled her out. Her son began performing CPR on his sister, Smith said.
“He said he learned it from watching TV,” Smith said.
The boy saved his sister’s life, Smith said.
On the way to the hospital “she started regaining her ability to breathe and started to cry,” he said.
The pool had no barrier around it, said Mesa Fire Engineer Donnie Colvin.
Another news story from ABC 15 News, Drowning warning for Valley parents:
PHOENIX – Two children died Saturday in separate swimming pool accidents, just hours apart.
Emergency responders on the scenes said both children were missing for around 20 minutes before family found them unconscious in their pools.
“There was no response to medical treatment or from CPR,” Mesa Paramedic Blu Caton said.
The first drowning call came in around 3:30 p.m. in Mesa, near the intersection of Broadway Road and Val Vista Drive. Investigators say a 3-year-old girl was out in the pool with several of her big brothers and sisters. The older siblings eventually all got out, but police say they forgot about the little girl.
There were no adults watching the pool, just other family, no older than 14.
“We like to stress adult supervision, especially with seven kids in the pool,” Caton said. “That’s a lot to handle.”
The little girl was pronounced dead shortly after at nearby hospital.
A couple hours later, and just a few miles away in South Phoenix near 44th Street and Southern Avenue, a 7-year-old girl could not get out of her above ground pool when her family was not watching.
When her family found her, police say they immediately called 911.
“The 911 operators worked with the grandparents to start them doing CPR; they told them how to do the CPR,” Phoenix Fire Capt. Jonathan Jacobs explained.
Paramedics and the family’s efforts were not enough. The girl died in the Maricopa Medical Center.
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