CNN reported that Usher’s five-year-old son, Usher Raymond V, was swimming in the backyard pool of his Atlanta home Monday evening when his hand got stuck in a drain, according to a police report.
What might have otherwise been a fun swim turned tragic for the R&B singer’s son as he searched for a toy. TMZ reported that he was playing in the pool with his aunt and saw a toy in the drain. He dove down to get the toy and his arm got stuck in the drain. The aunt immediately dove in to rescue him but couldn’t get his hand out. The maid then dove in and tried unsuccessfully. When the maid screamed for help, two contractors working on sound equipment in the house came out, dove in, and freed the boy.
Sound technician Eugene Stachurski was the hero who used CPR to revive him on the side of the pool, the CNN report shows. The child was then taken to the hospital “conscious, alert and breathing.”
Usher was not at the house at the time, but arrived when his son was being given CPR. Little Usher was hospitalized overnight after the terrifying incident. Usher and his ex-wife, Tameka Foster, the boy’s mother, stayed by his bedside Tuesday, and doctors expect him to make a full recovery, TMZ reported.
Danger of pool drains
Tampa Bay Fox News interviewed Danette Boger of South Tampa’s Seal Swim School who said that getting stuck in a pool drain can happen all too easily. “A loose article of clothing, the hair, it’s easy to get stuck in there and you can’t really help yourself at that point,” she told the news station.
Most public pools already have covers in place following a 2007 law that requires anti-entrapment drain covers. The 2007 Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act is named after a 7-year-old girl who drowned after she was trapped under water by the powerful suction of a hot tub drain. The cause of death that led to Graeme’s drowning was suction entrapment from a faulty drain cover (poolsafely.gov).
Still, not every pool has a drain cover or one that is up to date, especially residential pools.
“It is extremely important, especially for children ages 2-4 and especially little boys. They’re very spontaneous and fearless and it does just take a second,” Boger told the Fox News station.
Among children, ages 1-14, drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death behind motor vehicle crashes, statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show. If your child is injured in any pool accident due to negligent supervision or owners, operators, or pool equipment manufacturers’ failure to exercise reasonable care, then our diving and drowning accident attorneys may be able to help you recover financial compensation for the injuries.
