A weekend visit to the Apex Centre water park in McKinney ended in tragedy last Saturday when a child died at the city-run facility, officials said. City leaders called the loss a "profound tragedy" and said they are supporting the child’s family and the first responders involved while an investigation continues. Out of respect for the family’s privacy, officials said no additional details would be released for now.
City Response And Ongoing Investigation
In a news release posted yesterday, the City of McKinney said the drowning occurred last Saturday and offered condolences to the child’s loved ones. "Our thoughts are with the child’s family, loved ones, and all those affected by this heartbreaking event," the release said.
The city noted that the incident "remains under review" and that it is cooperating with the appropriate agencies as they work to determine what happened. Officials also said that support resources are being made available both to those directly affected and to personnel who responded to the emergency.
Family And Local Media Identify The Victim
While authorities have declined to release the victim’s name or age, family posts and a GoFundMe identified the child as 9-year-old Amani Edwards, according to reporting by The Dallas Morning News. Local social media has been filled with messages of grief, support for the family, and calls for privacy as investigators continue their work.
Incident At A Popular City Aquatics Complex
The drowning occurred at the Apex Centre, a city-operated aquatics and fitness complex located at 3003 Alma Road. The facility includes indoor and outdoor leisure pools, a lazy river, water slides, and other amenities, and it runs year-round lifeguard and aquatics programming.
City facility pages and posted rules describe lifeguard training standards and aquatics safety policies meant to guide public use of the pools and other water features.
Why Drowning Remains A Leading Risk For Children
National data underscore how deadly these incidents can be. A recent analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4 and remains among the top causes of unintentional injury death for older children.
The CDC recommends a mix of prevention measures, including wider access to basic swimming and water-safety lessons, close and attentive supervision around any body of water, and physical protections such as four-sided pool fencing to reduce risk.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram and other local outlets first reported the incident. Authorities have said they will release more information when appropriate, and this story will be updated as public agencies provide additional details.
