St. Louis Drowning Accident Attorney

Swimming Pools Can Be Dangerous for Children

Out of all of those who are injured or who die drowning accidents each year, children are the most at-risk group. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) states in a recent report that drowning is now the number one cause of accidental death in children. One out of four drowning fatalities involves children under the age of 14, and for every death, four children are treated in the emergency room for underwater related accidents, which can cause irreversible brain damage.

Backyard or residential swimming pools pose the greatest danger to children. Children sometimes think they are able to swim better than they actually can and they often believe that no harm can come to them, so they may take unnecessary risks while in the pool. Other reasons for these accidents can be inadequate supervision from parents or other adults.

Children are also known to sneak into the pools of neighbors when the pools are not properly secured by a four-sided fence with a self-latching gate. The CPSC reports that 77% of home drowning victims have been missing for five minutes or less when found in the backyard pool.

Negligence Can Cause Drowning

In addition to pools, people can drown in bathtubs, hot tubs, at the beach, even five-gallon buckets or toilets. The number one reason children or adults drown is negligence. Supervision of both young people and the elderly may not be vigilant enough, the pool may not have a cover or it may not be working properly. The pool may not have a proper fence around it.

Whatever the reason, it usually comes down to the fact that the person who should have been watching out for the victim did not. If a family member or loved one has been injured or has died in a drowning accident, it is crucial to seek the counsel of a qualified personal injury lawyer from Meyerkord & Kurth, to discuss your legal options.

Our attorneys have more than 100 years of combined legal experience, and we know how to get results for our clients. Contact us online or call (800) 391-4318 today.