Officials in Riverside County are investigating a swimming pool accident in Hemet, California, which killed 2-year-old Aden Sanborn the afternoon of August 3, 2009. According to a CBS news report, Aden was found in a backyard pool at a home in the 30000 block of Apricot Avenue. He was found to be not breathing. Emergency personnel performed CPR on the boy and rushed him to the hospital, but could not save him.

My heart goes out to the parents, family and friends of Aden Sanborn for their tragic, heartbreaking loss. I offer my deepest sympathies to everyone who knew and loved this little boy.

Swimming Pool Accident Statistics

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, in 2005, there were 3,582 unintentional fatal drownings in the United States. About 25 percent of these fatalities involved young children--14 or younger. Four times as many children get emergency care for nonfatal injuries for every child who dies. In 2005, of all children aged 1 to 4 who died in the United States, 30 percent died from drowning. According to the National Center for Injury Prevention, in 2006, drowning was only second to car accidents as the most common cause of death in children aged 1 to 14.

This summer has been disastrous as far as swimming pool accidents are concerned in Southern California. There have been several near drowning incidents reported in Orange and Los Angeles counties that involved severe brain injury and other critical injuries. Most of these incidents involve young children, many of them toddlers.

Swimming Pool Accidents are Preventable

The tragic aspect of these swimming pool accidents is that they are entirely preventable. Swimming pool accidents can pose serious liability issues for a homeowner. If a neighbor's child or acquaintance's child is visiting or if you are caring for a child and he or she drowns in your swimming pool because there was no gate or the gate was unlocked, you could be held liable. If your child has been injured or has drowned in a swimming pool accident in a day camp, club or a neighbor's backyard pool, please understand that you have rights. Please contact an experienced California personal injury lawyer who has a successful track record handling swimming pool accident cases. If you have a backyard pool, please make sure it is fenced or gated and locked all the time. If you invite children to your home, please make sure they are under constant supervision while in the water. Please be safe this summer.

A 9-year-old girl has died in a Los Angeles County swimming pool accident after she drowned in a backyard pool in Arcadia, California. According to a news report in the Pasadena Star-News, the swimming pool accident occurred the afternoon of July 20, 2009 when she and other children were playing in the backyard pool. Officials say the girl, who has not been identified, was a visitor at the home. She was found underwater in the deep end. One of the children tried to rescue her before a homeowner jumped in to pull her out, Arcadia police said. The homeowners had initiated CPR when police arrived. The girl was transported to an area hospital, but was taken off life support and died a day after the accident.

My heart goes out to the family and friends of this little girl for their tragic, heartbreaking and untimely loss. I offer my deepest condolences. They will certainly be in my prayers.

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in 2005, there were 3,582 fatal unintentional drownings in the United States averaging 10 deaths per day. More than one in four fatal drowning victims are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another four received emergency department medical care for nonfatal submersion injuries. Nonfatal drownings or near-drownings must not be taken lightly because they can cause serious brain injury and even permanent brain damage that could result in long-term disabilities such as memory problems, learning disabilities and permanent loss of basic functioning.

Based on this news report, it appears to me that there was a complete lack of adult supervision in this backyard pool. This could have resulted in another tragedy if something had happened to the other child who ventured to rescue the girl! It's indeed fortunate that it did not happen. Lack of supervision or inattention on the part of adults is the leading cause of child drownings in the United States. In this case, the girl was a visitor at the home. However, it's not clear whether the adults in charge were family members, friends, acquaintances or caregivers.

If a child drowns in your home, in your swimming pool, under your watch, then you could be held liable for the drowning or fatality. The Los Angeles personal injury lawyers at Bisnar | Chase handle many such cases each summer caused by negligence and inattention. It's extremely important that you follow safety measures if you are having a pool party, a gathering or even a play date by the pool. The most important safety measure you can take when children are playing in the water is non-stop supervision.

I came across a Web site put up by the parents of John Albert Pluchinsky who died in a swimming pool drowning accident while attending Space Week day camp, at the Houston Racquet Club in Houston, Texas. The swimming pool drowning happened on July 18, 2007. The 4-year-old boy drowned in a Clearwater pool within plain sight of two lifeguards and six camp counselors with a ratio of almost one counselor for every two campers. Of course, the question that John's grief-stricken parents have asked time and time again is: HOW could this have happened?

The Web site has detailed reports of John's cause of death. It takes apart each and every aspect of the drowning incident, exploring the failure of all those responsible for swimming pool safety at every level in the club. But the goal of this Web site is to prevent swimming pool accidents, particularly at summer day camps, by educating and training everyone involved -- from club managers and camp directors to individual counselors and lifeguards. I think this is absolutely commendable. John's parents say they hope another family "does not have to endure the lifelong pain of losing a child due to an easily preventable death."

Isn't that the truth? Swimming pool accidents -- whether they happen in a backyard pool or at a club or during a field trip -- are entirely preventable. These drowning incidents and near-drowning incidents, which injure and kill hundreds of children in Southern California, can be avoided if children are under constant and vigilant supervision when they are enjoying themselves in the pool.

With summer camps and swim lessons starting out at clubs and community centers all over the country, it is time for us to think about this issue. Many of us entrust our child to the care of a daycare center or a day camp operator during the summer when they are away from school. We send them out on field trips with the hope that camp counselors and organizers will take care of our children and give them a happy and safe camping experience. Most often, that is the case. But sometimes, swimming pool negligence does occur and as a result tragedy follows -- as it happened with John Pluchinsky.

The Pluchinskys have a tip sheet on their Web site for parents who are about to send their children to camp or swim lessons. Here's the link to their page titled "Lessons Learned." If you are a parent or a grandparent or if you are caring for a child, you need to learn these lessons.

If your child has been injured or killed in a swimming pool accident as a result of someone else's negligence, please contact experienced personal injury attorneys to find out more information about your legal rights and options. Knowledgeable personal injury attorneys will be able to determine whether negligence was a factor in your child's swimming pool accident case.