4-Year old at WI Dells Resort drowns while lifeguard looks on

[robinb]

http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/index.php?ntid=197139

FRI., JUN 15, 2007 - 10:27 AM

Lifeguard was told twice not to enter pool, police say

KAROLYN MAURER
Baraboo News Republic


A supervisor at the Wilderness Resort in Lake Delton twice told a lifeguard not to enter a pool to help what turned out to be a drowning child, according to a police report released Thursday.

Tyler Houtakker, 4, of Asbury, Iowa, drowned June 8 at around 8 p.m. in an indoor pool at the resort in Wisconsin Dells.

Lake Delton Police Chief Tom Dorner said he doesn't expect charges to be filed against the resort.


"We're not suspecting any foul play or anything. It was obviously an accident," Dorner said.
Joe Eck, a spokesman for the Wilderness Resort, said four lifeguards were on duty at the time.

Eck said the resort's lifeguards enter the water daily for saves or attempted saves. "It's a subjective call on the lifeguard's part, but we'd rather be proactive," he said.

However, one lifeguard on duty Friday who saw the boy face-down in the pool asked a nearby supervisor twice if she should enter the pool to retrieve the child. The supervisor told the lifeguard to have someone who was swimming nearby check on the child, according to the police report. The lifeguard supervisor told police that "guests get angry when lifeguards enter the pool for non-emergency situations." The supervisor told police he initially thought the child was playing, according to the report.
The child was unresponsive, so the manager told the lifeguard to have the patron bring the boy to the side of the pool, the police report said.
"We feel on our part our guards did the best they could with the situation," Eck said.

Lifeguards attempted to resuscitate the boy when he was pulled from the pool. Ambulance personnel arrived shortly after and took over efforts to revive him. The boy was taken to St. Clare Hospital in Baraboo where he was pronounced dead, Dorner said Monday.

Tony Hozeny, the director of communications for the state Department of Commerce, said his department is conducting a tag-team investigation into the drowning with the state Department of Health and Family Services.
Hozeny said his department is making sure the water park meets state safety regulations.

Stephanie Marquis, communications director for the state Department of Health and Family Services, said her department also continues to investigate the drowning. "Although the investigation is not complete, initial findings indicate that the number of lifeguards at the pool met or exceeded the necessary requirements," she said Thursday.

According to the National Safety Council, 3,000 people drown every year. Children 4 years old and younger are most likely to drown. Most drownings occur in a bathtub or when a child falls into a pool.

The boy's parents, Tammy and Brian Houtakker, who were at the park with their son last week, chose not to comment.


My first reaction was: Why does a lifeguard have to check with a supervisor to save someone?!?

FWIW, we stayed at this resort over Spring Break and had a great time. The lifeguard did stop the wave pool once due to rough-housing. I assume this was one of the wavepools because of the quote about guests getting "angry". I recall there being a lot of lifeguards there, but they can't save someone if they are not allowed in the water!

 

[lisajl]

What on Earth is going on? Yes, I agree with you. WHY does the lifeguard have to ask. That lifeguard probably had a gut feeling that something was wrong. Always follow your gut feelings.


Lisa

 

[U2_rocks!]

I'm wondering where the kid's parents were too?

 

[birdiesunshine]

This story doesn't make sense to me. Even if they thought the boy was playing around, isn't it their job to find out firsthand and not have a guest at the hotel check it out. Then I thought it said the boy was unresponsive so, again, they had a guest bring the boy to the side of the pool. WHAT?!?!?

This makes no sense to me. That poor little boy

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

I feel so bad for this poor little boy - and for the lifeguard. Many of them are just teens themselves. He felt like something was wrong enough to tell his supervisor twice. He probably is scarred for life. He should have just ignored the supervisor and checked himself, but I'm sure that's all he thinks about now, too. I can't believe they can't just go in the water anytime they feel like it. And if people are rough housing in the water, they *should* be stopped. It's a sad day when people are afraid to do the right thing.

I also can't believe no one else checked on him. Of course it's the lifeguard who I think should have gone, but what about a parent or family member? Was this kid swimming completely alone? Weird.

 

[mattsdragon]

"Guests get angry when lifeguards enter the pool"

Am I the only one who sees a problem with this statement? Have people gotten so self-absorbed nowadays that they actually complain when a lifeguard is saving someone's life?

"We were TRYING to play Marco Polo, but the LIFEGUARD had to go and save somebodies life. Ruined our WHOLE vacation."

 

[CEDmom]

That's crazy, a good lifeguard wouldn't have thought twice before acting to save that child. Asking before doing your job . I do have to wonder where the heck this kid's parents were.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

My guess is that the parents will sue.

The policy of this waterpark is crap.

However that being said we always had our dd's wear life jackets when they were young in the wave pool.

Not to mention we would NEVER have a 4yo unsupervised in the pool without a PARENT.

However that is not part of the story and I am sure the water park will pay for this one.

 

[Blondie]

"Guests get angry when lifeguards enter the pool"

Am I the only one who sees a problem with this statement? Have people gotten so self-absorbed nowadays that they actually complain when a lifeguard is saving someone's life?

"We were TRYING to play Marco Polo, but the LIFEGUARD had to go and save somebodies life. Ruined our WHOLE vacation."

Thats what I was thinking.

What's the purpose of having lifeguards if they can't do their job, or have to ask? In the time it took to check with a supervisor, precious seconds/minutes were slipping away.

Sad situation all the way around, for the child, the parents and the lifeguard.

 

[MosMom]

We don't know the whole story. The child could have gotten away from his parents. Drownings can happen so fast. That is why there are lifeguards.

I would also like to add that it is absurd patrons get mad when lifeguards believe a person is drowning, but I believe it!

 

[CookieGVB]

That's got to be one of the saddest things I've ever heard. That poor lifeguard will never know if it was already too late for the boy or not.

A lifeguard shouldn't have to check with a supervisor - if they think something is wrong, there probably is.

I feel sorry for the poor baby, the parents, and the lifeguard. The water park - hell no.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

Abs. ridiculous! i cannot believe that this is policy at this resort?? They have to ASK to save a life?!!?!? That poor lifeguard and that poor little boy

I too am wondering where the boys parents were throughout all of this

 

[I'mNoPrince]

I also knew of a place where they were more like pool monitors then lifeguards. It was posted with some legal mumbojumbo .

I'm sorry but a 4 year old doesn't just get away from a set of parents long enough for a lifeguard to ask a few times if they can go get the kid floating face-down in the pool.

This is just another case where all the adults (parents losing sight of their kid,Lifeguard for not guarding life regardless of rules, Supervisor for not allowing a timely check,resort it's self for the rule) involved most likely caused this senseless death of a poor child.

 

[Hannathy]

We are raising a generation with no backbone thanks IMO to all the overprotective parents out there. Sad, sad story, I hope there is more to the story than we know but the Lifeguard should have acted as trained not waited to be told...but if they never learned to make any decisions it doesn't come naturally in a crisis, it comes from practice.

 

[piglet too]

Drownings can happen so fast. My heart goes out to the family and the lifegaurd.

I almost lost my now 8yr old son to drowning last summer. Despite there being adults all over the place, and my own DH in the pool, no one saw him struggling. I thank God that it was my husband that he bumped into while he was floating, and not one of the other kids. They may have just pushed him away thinking he was joking around. It does not take long for a tragedy to happen, and I know we are among the lucky ones.

 

[The_Horned_King]

I'm wondering where the kid's parents were too?

My thoughts exactly..the kid was only 4...my parents would have been next to me at all times when I was that young.

 

[Daxx]

Former certified life guard here. All I have to say is that if there were ANY signs of someone struggling in a pool or things not looking/feeling right, we HAD to jump in and do whatever necessary to help out. To ask a supervisor if you should enter the pool is unheard of and wrong!!! You just jump in and do your thing! It really bothers me that this pool has this alleged rule that lifeguards have to ask to go in to rescue someone. WTHeck? Since when do other people (guests, not certified life guards) need to check on a person who might be drowning!? Isn't it better to be safe than sorry? I suppose, in this case, it would've made a world of difference if that guard had jumped in immediately!

We had to do drills every day -- sometimes people were in the pool and sometimes they'd make everyone get out of the pool. Even if we saw a person remotely struggling, we had to get into the pool! No ifs, ands or buts!

Personally, the line of thinking that lifeguards in the pool make guests angry -- how angry would YOU have been if it were your child!? Please!!!! Honestly, how angry do you think the guests are for the supervisors to "blow this off"? And, imagine how uncomfortable it was for guests to watch them haul a drowned child out of the pool and not be able to save him?!? I think that's far more angering than watching a guard try to save a child!

 

[piglet too]

Personally, the line of thinking that lifeguards in the pool make it uncomfortable for guests -- how uncomfortable for guests do you think it was to watch them haul a drowned child out of the pool and not be able to save him?!? I think that's far more harrowing than watching a guard try to save a child!

I know that the thought of being in a pool still makes me feel sick and have flashbacks to my son. I know that, especially after reading this, I will not feel any safer just because there are lifeguards around.

 

[DisneyfeverTN]

Although I think the life guard should have jumped in the moment he suspected something was wrong, the parents should have been right next to their child at all times. A four yr old child should be supervised every second in a pool.

When my youngest DS took swimming lessons, I was right beside the pool for every lesson. He was 3 & 4 at the time. He took lessons all summer long. During one lesson he almost drowned. He was bobbing in the water and for some reason nobody was looking. I almost had to jump in myself.

A friend of mine knew someone who dropped their 5 yr old off at swimming lessons and came back to a dead child. The child had drowned during swimming lessons.

Lifeguards are not a replacement for parents to supervise their small children. Although I really think this lifeguard made a huge mistake, the parents should have had a life vest or something on this child and been right next to the child constantly.

 

[Barb D]

DS15 is a lifeguard, and does not have to ask anyone's permission to jump in the pool. Yesterday he was "tested" while he was on duty; a special doll was placed in the pool and they timed him to see how long it would take him to notice and "rescue" it. (He passed.) I asked him how the other people in the pool reacted when he jumped in. He said some came up and asked about it afterward, but it sure didn't sound like anyone was upset about it!