A 1-year-old boy, embroiled in a life-and-death struggle, was rushed to the hospital after being discovered in a pool at a Miami residence on Friday. The young child, reportedly in extremely critical condition, was admitted to Jackson Memorial Hospital, according to CBS News Miami.
The incident occurred shortly before noon in Miami's Little Haiti neighborhood, within the 6200 block of North Miami Avenue. Miami Police and Fire Rescue teams responded promptly to a frantic emergency call and attempted to revive the child, who turned 1 year and 7 months old the same day. According to NBC 6 Miami, Fire Rescue Lt. Ignatius Carroll praised the officers for stepping beyond their usual roles to engage in life-saving efforts.
Details surrounding the events leading up to the child's submersion remain vague, with police continuing their investigation into the matter. "There’s a lot of factors, we need to see if the child or children were properly supervised. Where were the parents, did they step out and leave the children alone?" Miami Police Capt. Freddie Cruz pondered in a statement obtained by NBC 6 Miami.
With Florida's unsettling reputation of leading the nation in unintentional drowning deaths among children ages 1-4, the community is deeply affected by such incidents. A neighbor, who preferred to remain unidentified, told NBC 6, "I'm more concerned for the family that lives in the house, I just woke up to yelling and didn’t know exactly what was going on." It has not yet been clarified whether the home had any barriers designed to restrict access to the pool area.
As the young boy continues to fight for his life, the Miami Police have extended a request to the public, asking for prayers for the child and family during this overwhelmingly trying period.
