WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah – West Valley City Fire Department officials said a near drowning that occurred Saturday serves as a reminder of how important it is for parents to know how to perform CPR, as a young boy who was found floating in a backyard pool was resuscitated by his family.
Battalion Chief Chris Beichner, West Valley City fire Department, said they were called shortly after 8 p.m. after a 3-year-old boy was found unconscious in a pool.
Beichner said the child’s parents were getting the children in their family ready for bed when they realized they couldn’t find the 3-year-old boy. After searching around they found him floating in a pool in the home’s backyard.
The parents pulled the child out, and he was unconscious and not breathing. Beichner said they estimated he was in the water for no more than five minutes.
CPR was begun immediately, and the child began to breathe and cough up water. By the time paramedics arrived, the child’s vital signs were normal and after 20 minutes of observation at the scene the child was taken to a hospital to be checked out as a precaution. The child was driven there by his parents in a personal vehicle.
Beichner said this situation stresses the importance of knowing CPR, and he encouraged all parents to take a CPR class.
