Two girls, ages 3 and 5, were rushed to Children’s Hospital in critical condition Friday evening after being pulled from a pool during a family gathering near San Antonio’s East Side. Family members had already started CPR when police arrived, turning a summer party into a frantic rescue.
According to Fox San Antonio, officers were called shortly before 7 p.m. to an apartment complex near Theis Drive and S WW White Road after a reported drowning. The initial report said the children were taken by EMS to Children’s Hospital in critical condition.
The girls’ ages place them in a group especially vulnerable to drowning emergencies. The CDC says drowning can happen quickly and silently, even when adults are nearby.
Police Say Adults Were Nearby At The Pool
Police told Fox San Antonio that the girls were not unattended and that adults at the pool noticed them, pulled them from the water and tried to help before officers arrived. Investigators were still collecting witness accounts and had not publicly released additional details about how the children entered the pool.
The incident comes during San Antonio’s peak summer swim season. In a June report, KSAT reported that local paramedics were urging families to designate one adult as a dedicated “water watcher,” with no phone or other distractions.
The CDC recommends close, constant supervision around water, four-sided fencing for home pools, swim lessons and CPR training. It also warns that inflatable arm floaties are not safety devices and can create a false sense of security.
The emergency echoes a separate San Antonio apartment-pool incident previously covered by Hoodline, involving a 2-year-old girl in March 2025. The cases are unrelated, but both underscore how quickly a pool gathering can become a medical emergency.
