Two weeks ago, Jason was found floating in the pool after he got through the open pool gate. It's also a reminder of an awful truth that recently hit home to a Peoria mother and her parents with almost deadly consequences. It's the kind of emergency that happens all too frequently, according to West Valley firefighters, who wage annual drowning-prevention efforts. The numbers have been compiled by the Children's Safety Zone, an Internet resource that has the support of Valley firefighters and the Drowning Prevention Coalition of Central Arizona. The toll has continued to rise in April as evidenced, among other things, by drownings last week in Avondale and Mesa and Jason's brush with death.
Authorities say the numbers are horrible enough.
However, they add that the figures fail to convey the grief resulting from the permanent incapacity suffered by some survivors of near drownings and the lifelong care they will need. In Jason's case, he was in cardiac arrest and had stopped breathing when his grandfather pulled him from the pool. The boy was discovered because the family dog's barking awakened the grandfather. Authorities believe Jason had been in the water at least five minutes, and he was in critical condition when he was flown to Phoenix Children's Hospital. As the medical helicopter rose into the air, Peoria and Glendale firefighters held little hope he would live.