FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - A toddler is fighting for his life after he was found unresponsive in the backyard pool of a North Lauderdale home.
According to North Lauderdale Fire Rescue, the 2-year-old victim was taken to the hospital in critical condition, Sunday morning.
Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies taped off a home in the Pebble Beach community for hours as they continued their investigation into how the little boy wound up at the bottom of the pool.
7News spoke to residents who live nearby about the incident.
“It’s heartbreaking. I feel for them. I really do. A 2-year-old? Too young,” said Barbara Tanner.
“A sad situation,” said a nearby resident.
Officials said one of the boy’s family members found the toddler unresponsive in the pool.
The family member immediately jumped in the water to pull the child out of the pool and started performing CPR.
Once first responders arrived, they continued CPR, and then the toddler was rushed to Broward General Medical Center for emergency treatment.
Deputies stayed at the scene to investigate.
“It was all blocked off, and I saw news reporters and everybody there, and I said, ‘Something serious has happened,'” said Tanner.
Unfortunately, this incident isn’t the only drowning South Florida has seen recently.
On Thursday, a 2-year-old drowned in a Plantation lake. It marks the fourth child drowning death in South Florida in the past three weeks.
Dr. Lisa-Gaye Robinson with Broward Health told 7News even just a few minutes without oxygen could cause immense damage.
“Children are attracted to water. It’s very sensory,” said Robinson. “If you escape and you have the near drowning, but if your brain was not getting oxygen for several minutes, that can lead to significant brain damage.”
BSO officials remind people to closely supervise young children near the water, install child-proof fences to keep them from entering pools, and learn CPR.
“People often think that drowning is something that happens to someone else, but the truth is it can happen to anyone anywhere. It is fast, it is silent, and the impact is far beyond the child,” said Cassie McGovern, Executive Director of Every Child a Swimmer.
As of Monday evening, BSO detectives said, the child remains in critical condition, as they continue to investigate.
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