Alert Sounded After 3 Kids Nearly Drown

Another dangerous summer for Orange County children in the water is underway, with three children nearly drowning Sunday in separate incidents.

One-year-old Joseph Arellano was revived by his cousin and aunt using instructions from an emergency dispatcher after he was found floating face down, unconscious but with a pulse, in his aunt and uncle’s swimming pool in Buena Park.

In the second incident, a 3-year-old girl was saved by a nearby resident after she was pulled from a hot tub in Anaheim, not breathing and without a pulse.

And in the third incident, a 4-year-old boy’s grandfather administered CPR after the child was found, unconscious and not breathing, in a family hot tub in Villa Park.

Joseph, the 1-year-old, wandered into the pool while he was being cared for by his relatives Sunday as his father visited his mother in the hospital. She had given birth to a boy Saturday.

Elaine O’Brien, an emergency dispatcher with the Orange County Fire Authority, gave the boy’s cousin and aunt instructions over the phone in doing chest compressions.

“She took the call when they dialed 911 and walked them through,” Capt. Scott Brown said.

“They were wonderful. God bless them,” said the boy’s uncle, Rafael Arellano, of the response by emergency personnel. “All the women in my family said to have this little boy safe was the best gift we could have for Mother’s Day.”

Arellano said a back door to the house was accidentally left open, and the toddler wandered out. He said the boy was left alone for only a few minutes.

The boy was examined at La Palma Intercommunity Hospital, and by Sunday evening was being taken by his father to see his new baby brother.

The 3-year-old, identified by hospital authorities as Michelle Montu, was being watched by her grandmother in the pool area of a condominium complex on South Brookhurst Street. The grandmother briefly turned away about 1 p.m., and the girl slipped into the hot tub, said Tabby Cato, public information officer for the Anaheim Fire Department.

The grandmother pulled her out, lifeless, and began screaming for help. A resident of a nearby condo, Kelly Stucky, who had previous medical training, ran out and managed to get the girl’s pulse going again, Cato said. Paramedics also treated her at the scene and took her to Martin Luther Hospital, where she arrived alert, according to emergency room technician Kito Bastos. She was transferred to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Anaheim, where she was listed in stable condition Sunday evening.

The 4-year-old boy, whose name was not released, wandered into the spa area when he was left unattended for an unknown period of time, said Brown of the Orange County Fire Authority. The area was fenced but the gate was open, Brown said.

After the boy was pulled out, blue and not breathing, his grandfather began CPR while his father called 911.

The grandfather’s efforts resuscitated the boy, who was breathing as paramedics rushed him to Chapman Medical Center in Orange. The hospital would not divulge information about his condition at the family’s request.

*

Officials said the incidents underscored how quickly a small child can drown.

Drowning is the leading cause of death for children 8 years old or younger in the U.S., and Orange County led the nation in child drownings last year with 15 deaths, and another 20 nearly drowned. There have been three drownings in Orange County so far this year.

“It only takes a second, and they’re gone,” Rafael Arellano said.

Brown said: “We call it the silent killer. Watch the water. Children drown without a sound.”

He said it was important for parents to ensure that homes of relatives and caretakers are safe for children.

“This happens in good homes all the time. What’s very, very important if you have a child under the care of a grandparent or baby sitter or whoever is that they know CPR. Also, if they have a pool, they should have barriers, protections in place,” Brown said.

Other advice offered by fire officials:

* Keep pools fenced and the gates latched at all times.

* Keep a phone by the pool, both to avoid leaving children alone when the phone rings, and to have immediate access to 911.

* Put childproof locks on doors leading out to the pool area, and use them.

For information on drowning prevention and free CPR classes, call (714) 744-0496. In Anaheim, call (714) 254-4022.