A Sacramento boy is hailed a hero after he dives into a pool and rescues a toddler when he sees him lying at the bottom.
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Messiah Brown explained in an interview with Good Morning America that he was playing in the pool when he saw the male toddler at the bottom. ‘I was just playing in the pool, and then I saw a boy at the bottom of the pool. And I went to go get him,’ Brown said. The seven-year-old was in the pool with his cousin Savannah when he alerted nearby adults about the incident after pulling the toddler out.
His mother, Tiara Delvalle, said her son dove and swam in six-feet deep water to rescue the toddler.
“Savannah brought him to his mom, and then they did CPR on the boy, and then they called the doctor,”
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The Sacramento Fire Department said in a statement that the incident took place on July 19 after first responders arrived at the apartment complex’s pool to assist. Witnesses said bystanders performed CPR on the boy and he was breathing on his own by the time EMTs arrived. He was listed in critical condition with advanced life support from firefighters but is expected to be okay.
Delvalle told GMA it was a miracle tht her son saved the toddler after keeping in touch with his mother. His father, Marcus Browne, said he knew his son loved to swim but was shocked when he learned about the rescue.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevent listed drowning as the number one cause of death for children.
The organization said children aged one to four are most likely to die from drowning in swimming pools, aside from birth defects. Additionally, it is the second most commom cause of injury for children within the same age range.
“Children ages 1–4 have the highest drowning rates. Most drownings in children 1–4 happen in swimming pools.2 Drowning can happen anytime, including when children are not expected to be near water, such as when they gain unsupervised access to pools. Fatal drowning is the second-leading cause of unintentional injury death behind motor vehicle crashes for children ages 1–14.
“For every child who dies from drowning, another eight receive emergency department care for non-fatal drowning. More than 40% of drownings treated in emergency departments require hospitalization or transfer for further care (compared with 8% for all unintentional injuries).Drowning injuries can cause brain damage and other serious outcomes, including long-term disability.”
The CDC reccomends to prevent further incidents is for parents to enroll their children in swimming classes and learn how to be aware of the risk.
Factors that can lead to drowing are swimming without a life jacket: not being able to swim, missing fences arounds eclosed pool areas, and lack of proper supervision.