2-year-old who drowned in Modesto pool got out of house unnoticed
The child who drowned in a family pool Friday evening in west Modesto has been identified as 2-year-old Elijah R. Valdez.
It appears the little boy got out of his house through either a door that was open a crack or screen door that had a tear in it, Modesto Police Department spokeswoman Sharon Bear said Monday. He was last seen about 15 to 20 minutes before a family member found him in the pool, she said.
Firefighters responded to the call from the 1500 block of January Drive shortly before 7 p.m. and found bystanders had begun CPR. An air ambulance was requested but AMR arrived on scene before the helicopter and took Elijah to Doctors Medical Center. In the hospital's emergency room, he was pronounced dead.
A gofundme.com account has been established to raise money for funeral expenses.
Information was not available Monday from the Modesto police or fire departments on whether there was a fence and properly working gate around the pool.
A similar incident occurred just less than a month ago when Hunter Eckles, also 2, was found in the swimming pool of his family's home in north Modesto. In that case, Hunter apparently got into the pool area through an ajar gate in the fence.
Hunter was resuscitated and, according to the latest update on the "Hope for Hunter" gofundme page, is increasing the time he can breath without a ventilator.
- Never leave a child unattended near water in a pool, tub, bucket or ocean. There is no substitute for adult supervision.
- Designate a "water watcher" to maintain constant watch over children in the pool during gatherings.
- The home should be isolated from the pool with a fence at least 60 inches tall, with a self-closing, self-latching gate. The gate should open away from the pool, and should never be propped open.
- Doors and windows should be alarmed to alert adults when opened. Doors should be self-closing and self-latching.
- Power-operated pool safety covers are the most convenient and efficient. Solar/floating pool covers are not safety devices.
- Keep a phone at poolside so you never have to leave the pool to answer the phone, and can call for help if needed.
- Learn CPR and rescue breathing. Keep a lifesaving ring, shepherd's hook and CPR instructions mounted at poolside.
- Do not use flotation devices as a substitute for supervision.
- If a child is missing, always check the pool first. Seconds count.
- Remove toys from in and around the pool when not in use. Don't use floating chlorine dispensers that look like toys.
- Instruct baby sitters about potential pool hazards, and emphasize the need for constant supervision.
- Responsibilities of pool ownership include ensuring children in the home learn to swim, and that adults know CPR. But do not consider children "drownproof" because they've had swimming lessons.
This story was originally published July 2, 2018 at 12:37 PM.