Lake54321 Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 A 3-year-old boy drowned Sunday afternoon at Kalahari in Sandusky. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/08/bo...ky_waterpa.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TH13TEEN Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Im a lifeguard at Countryside YMCA and we are not babysitters. We keep our eyes on hundreds of people every day, and the parents cant even keep their eyes on one child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dbfan Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Sad, but people need to pay more attention, a 3 year old? If I was a parent, I wouldnt let a 3 year old out of my sight at a water park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lake54321 Posted August 3, 2009 Author Share Posted August 3, 2009 Im a lifeguard at Countryside YMCA and we are not babysitters. We keep our eyes on hundreds of people every day, and the parents cant even keep their eyes on one child. Your right, I see parents let their kids run wild at water parks and can't believe it. I'm sure there will be an investigation and I hope Kalahari had enough lifeguards on duty, they have been fined for that before. Someone said it took them over 5 minutes to find the parents, they were nowhere near the kid! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TH13TEEN Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 ^ Its sad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browns4life Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Goes to show that some people shouldnt be allowed to have kids... It is very sad though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TH13TEEN Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 ^ Ummm... Okay then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamondback96 Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 ^ Ummm... Okay then. Sadly, it's true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BavarianBeatle Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Exactly! As a single parent, my first reaction is "Where were the parents?!" It takes several minutes to drown, and when mine were that age, i would never have even considered taking them to a water park! Running through the sprinkler was fine at that age! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browns4life Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 What i dont get, there had to be someone that saw the boy drowning. So why didnt anyone step in? Maybe there wasnt anyone around, I dont know. BavarianBeatle Exactly! As a single parent, my first reaction is "Where were the parents?!" It takes several minutes to drown, and when mine were that age, i would never have even considered taking them to a water park! Running through the sprinkler was fine at that age! Whenever my wife and I decide to have kids they wont see a waterpark until they are tall enough to stand in the shallow end of a regular pool, and know how to swim. Where were the parents? I have seen some very ****ty parenting. Take this for instance it was at teh grocery store and there was a man with his boy. The boy had no shirt on with was wearing roller skates!!! Notthe shoes with the wheels, but roller skates!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalefan Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Kalahari was fined a few years ago for not having enough guards. And then covering that up to try to fool the inspectors. That didnt work well. Lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lake54321 Posted August 3, 2009 Author Share Posted August 3, 2009 Here is a little more of the story.... http://www.sanduskyregister.com/articles/2...9c559316245.txt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avatar Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 ^ thanks for the 2nd article link, that is why I try not to judge situations until all that facts come out. The mother was searching for him and got security to help when the boy was discovered. How tragic for the boy and his family and the facility too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RailRider Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 ^ Avatar, while I am with you on not being quick to judge. From the reports of the second article it sounds like the mother was watching both children and the youngest who died was only 3. Im not sure how to translate watching, but me as a Father with a 2 year old I am going to be by her side whenever she is around or in water, because of the danger water can pose to children and also because of news reports about incidents at some Disney Water Parks. Then again maybe I am over protective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avatar Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Oh I agree about the age or even the use of a life jacket, but resort was busy so i don't know if they were available. Basically I am ignorant on the total facts but the authorities are not saying anything about neglect or such, plus I do not know the families history. The family is grief stricken beyond anyone's imagination I am sure of that. Why do i know that? Well many who know me know I have a adult stepson which I have cared for since he was 7, well Travis had a 2 year younger brother. Well (not saying the name) younger brother had some health issues and several options where available, we had to choose which path would be best taking in consideration of many things. Younger brother at age 7 got up one day combed his hair brushed his teeth and went to school, that would be the last time we seen him alive as while he was in school his heart burst and he died immediately. At this time I do not know of anything worse in life than burying your child as I seen first hand what it did to a heart broken mother. Hindsight would we have chosen a different option, Hell Yeah!!! but if the circumstances where the same without knowing the results we probably would have did the same. What I am trying to say is for the most part we are ignorant of the facts but I know that family must be grief stricken and I do not want to pass ignorant of the facts judgment on them as they do not need this at this time. Their is time to second guess and pass judgment as the fact do come in down the road but for right now they need support. They have mine and please god bless them and put your healing hand upon that family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rcfreak339 Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 This was a tragedy and my prayers go out to the family and the faculty. This is a situation where you can point fingers at everyone and most likely they won't come up with who is responsible. The parents should not have let a 3 year old out of arms reach, but there should have been more lifeguards on watch....It's a bad situation. When I stayed at the resort everything seemed so organized and it looked like there where a good amount of guards on watch with 3 guards on each side of the wavepool, 2 guards on top of each waterslide tower and even more on the raft tower and 2 at the bottom....It honestly seemed like there were more guards there then any waterpark Iv'e been to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KIfan1980 Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 Avatar - thank you for being willing to share your personal stories to help illustrate the point. As to the event, my thoughts and prayers go out to the family along with the lifeguard and other responders. This tragic event is likely to be traumatic to some people for a very long time (imagine the "what if" game the lifeguard or others who were there will play). I'd also caution folks to try not to judge - as a parent of young kids, I always try to be in the water with them, hold hands in parking lots, teach them how to stop their bikes at streets, etc..., but also know first hand that things can happen in an instant despite all your best efforts. Nobody is perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TH13TEEN Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 I wish the best for the family. This is aweful. I cant imagin how they feel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TH13TEEN Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 What i dont get, there had to be someone that saw the boy drowning. So why didnt anyone step in? Maybe there wasnt anyone around, I dont know. BavarianBeatle Exactly! As a single parent, my first reaction is "Where were the parents?!" It takes several minutes to drown, and when mine were that age, i would never have even considered taking them to a water park! Running through the sprinkler was fine at that age! Whenever my wife and I decide to have kids they wont see a waterpark until they are tall enough to stand in the shallow end of a regular pool, and know how to swim. Where were the parents? I have seen some very ****ty parenting. Take this for instance it was at teh grocery store and there was a man with his boy. The boy had no shirt on with was wearing roller skates!!! Notthe shoes with the wheels, but roller skates!!! It doesnt matter if they can stand in the shallow water. Their heads are heaviar than their bodys they will very easily go head first into the water and not be able to pick themselfs up. Just sayin... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 Drowning at Sandusky's Kalahari Water Park leaves questions unanswered, officials say: Regulators may never know whether Kalahari Water Park had enough lifeguards on duty when a Detroit-area boy drowned on Sunday, a top safety official said Monday. But, he warned, it's possible that no number of lifeguards could have prevented the death of 3-year-old Hassan Itani of Dearborn, Mich. "A tragic situation like this can occur under the best of circumstances," Bob England of the Erie County Health Department said Monday. England said he couldn't rule out a violation of state regulations, but said the aquatic amusement park near Sandusky has a pretty good record with the health board. But the Huron Township facility, which is one of five aquatic amusement parks in Erie County, has had a history of lifeguard shortages, according to other Ohio safety officials. ... http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/08/dr...s_kalahari.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FriedOreoGirl Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 Maybe im a word that starts with a B but she should have not been watching them. She should have been IN WITH THEM. i have a 3 and 4 year old and we took them to boomarang bay this year and my arms were so tired by the end of the day because i constantly had ahold of them. helping them float and sitting with them as they splashed. i only was away from them for the few seconds it took for me to be at the top of the slide while they slide down into their fathers arms. And you know what. There was a mom there who slide her 1 yr old down the slide with no one to catch her. and she went head first into the water and my husband ran to help her up cuz she was under. and the mom comes down the stairs just giggleing like her child didnt just about drown. Some people are not fit to be parents if they dont care about their saftey and are not going to help and protect them in the water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcc Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 The story is tragic, but a 3 year old should not be in the water without someone RIGHT there with them. We took our 3 girls to Cedar Point a few years ago, and we stayed at Castaway Bay. We made all 3 wear life jackets and we were right there with them the entire time. Even the shallow parts, I was within a few inches at all times. Kids simply can not be trusted around water. Even a few inches in a bucket can drown a child. My neighbor lost her 2 year old son to a shallow bucket of mopping water. I feel for the family, I can't imagine the heartache. Small kids and water simply require a lot of attention, and if you can't give that attention, do not take them. Lifeguards can't watch every single person at every single minute. I look at it this way, it is MY responsibility to watch MY children. The lifeguard is there should a problem arise on my watch. He/She is not my personal babysitter. Simple as that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RailRider Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 Hassan, who could not swim, somehow wound up over his head quickly: His mother and other witnesses told investigators that she had been watching him and his 6-year-old brother from a lounge chair, but lost sight of the boys for a few moments. She stood up to look for them just as lifeguards pulled Hassan from the pool. Emphasis added. I will let the report speak for itself. http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/08/dr...s_kalahari.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rcfreak339 Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 They should start a system my local pool has started, If your under the age of 10 when you enter you get a armband that says "in arms reach" and If a lifeguard sees anyone with that arm band on and is not with a parent the lifeguard must find the parents with the kid. It's a good system and I think every waterpark should use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HTCO Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 They should start a system my local pool has started, If your under the age of 10 when you enter you get a armband that says "in arms reach" and If a lifeguard sees anyone with that arm band on and is not with a parent the lifeguard must find the parents with the kid. It's a good system and I think every waterpark should use it. My pool requires anyone under 13 to be with a parent at all times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TH13TEEN Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 They should start a system my local pool has started, If your under the age of 10 when you enter you get a armband that says "in arms reach" and If a lifeguard sees anyone with that arm band on and is not with a parent the lifeguard must find the parents with the kid. It's a good system and I think every waterpark should use it. Our system is very much a like. Everyone that has a yellow wrist band must have a parent in the water. Anyone wich has a yellow wrist band that is under the age of 6 must have a parent within arms reach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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