CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. – A toddler remains in critical condition after he was rushed to a hospital Sunday after being pulled from the pool of a home in Coral Springs.
According to Coral Springs Fire Rescue officials, crews responded to a call about a near drowning at around 5:45 p.m.
Residents in the area told Local 10 News the incident occurred in the 2600 block of Northwest 95th Avenue.
“I heard a little girl screaming and then I look over the fence and I see that the dad was pulling out a baby from the pool,” neighbor Matthew Perez-Choi said.
According to Perez-Choi, the 1-year-old boy had no vital signs when he was pulled from the water.
“I went in the house, I went to the back and then the 911 operator was on the phone with me, trying to tell me how to do the CPR, so I performed CPR on him,” Perez-Choi said.
Rabbi Mordechai Lichy also ran over and immediately called 911.
“There was several people bent over on the ground, screaming hysterically,” Lichy said. “And I saw that they were breathing into the baby’s mouth, and the baby actually spit up a large amount of water. I had told them then, ‘Turn him on the side. You can’t keep him on his back. When he’s spitting up, you have to turn him on his side.’”
Officials confirmed that police officers arrived at the scene first and performed CPR on the 1 1/2 –year-old, taking over for neighbors.
Paramedics transported the boy to Broward Health Coral Springs in critical condition.
“The worst I have seen,” Lichy said. “My heart goes out to these people. I’ve lived next to them for 30 years. They are really nice, decent people, and this was just one of the most difficult things I’ve ever witnessed.”
According to the Florida Department of Health, from 2018 to 2020 combined, Florida was ranked the highest in the U.S. for the number of accidental drownings among children ages 0 to 9.
“Annually there are enough children under the age of 5 lost to drowning (50 in 2019, 60 in 2020, and 75 in 2021) to fill three or four preschool classrooms,” the health department posted on its website.
The family has started a GoFundMe account that they say will help pay for the toddler’s medical expenses. Click here if you would like to contribute.
Click here for information about free or low cost swim lessons in South Florida.
Click here for more information about drowning prevention.