Emergency officials in Northeast Georgia worked three separate near drownings involving children Saturday, all of which occurred in residential pools.
Hall County Fire Services Division Chief Zach Brackett said officials responded to a home on Gillsville Highway just before 1:00 p.m. to find a 13-year-old boy who had been recovered from a pool. A bystander, who Brackett said was also a child, reportedly performed CPR on the victim until emergency crews arrived on the scene.
"Once our crews arrived, he was conscious and he was transported emergently to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Scottish Rite," Brackett said.
Later that afternoon, Brackett said crews were called to another near drowning, this time involving a 9-year-old boy who was recovered from a pool on Clarks Bridge Road. That child was conscious when crews arrived and was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville.
A holiday weekend gathering in Habersham County was also marred by an emergency Saturday.
“We responded to a residence of a 6-year-old that was unresponsive in a pool,” said Mt. Airy Police Chief Tim Jarrell.
The incident was reported just after 6 p.m. at a home in one of the town’s subdivisions, where a family was enjoying a holiday gathering when the child disappeared from view and was found in the swimming pool.
“The child is being airlifted,” Jarrell said.
No further details are immediately available on that incident.
Also on Saturday, a man was found dead after drowning in Lake Lanier and emergency crews responded to a reported evening drowning at Shoal Creek Park near Buford.
Brackett said it's important for parents to practice basic pool safety during the busy holiday weekend. He said safe practices include keeping children within arm's reach of an adult, having a plan for if an emergency occurs and having safety equipment such as personal floatation devices.
Brackett also said that in the three near-drownings that have occurred in Hall County over the past week, there were bystanders who knew CPR which aided emergency crews.
