Just two days after seven-year-old Angelica Saydee Jogie died when she was hit by a jet ski in Tobago waters, a six-year-old girl suffered a near drowning in a public pool in Gasparillo on Friday.
Skylar Gabriel was yesterday admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH) following the incident at the Bumper Jumperz Fun Park, Morash Avenue, Bonne Aventure.
The Sunday Express was told yesterday that Skylar’s condition had improved since Friday, after she was submerged under four feet (1.2 metres) of water for several minutes before she was pulled from the pool.
Skylar is said to be on the mend, with her breathing moving from 35% to 50% on a ventilator.
When the Sunday Express visited the SFGH yesterday, Skylar’s parents, mom Desire Walters, a firefighter, and dad Sheldon Gabriel, a fire service officer, said their daughter’s condition was “looking up”.
They said they were dedicated to ensuring their daughter survives the incident and were unconcerned by statements from people on social media who did not know them.
The couple shared that while Skylar was their only child together, Gabriel has a son from a previous relationship.
Walters confirmed that Skylar had “high-functioning autism”.
“I am a good mother. Anyone who knows me knows that. As a mother of a child with autism, you always have to be looking here and there, 24/7,” she said.
Friday’s incident was a “slip-up”, she admitted.
“Our backs were turned to her because we were unpacking for her. We were not there for long, and as soon as we got there, she went into the water right away. It happened quickly. It was a slip-up,” she said.
The mother said that her daughter was accustomed to going to other water parks where life jackets were distributed promptly on arrival.
“There were no life jackets at this place, and there were no lifeguards,” she added.
Gabriel said that for several minutes, he and Walters searched the premises for their daughter, without assistance from staff or other patrons.
“I was walking up and down, checking in the pool, went to the bathroom, came back, looking for my daughter. We told the staff she was missing, but the music continued playing. It was only after she was found that the staff came running,” he said.
As a fire service officer, he said it was his duty to render CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) to unconscious victims.
“Does anyone know what it is like to do CPR on your own child? At that moment, I blocked out everyone and my only focus was on my child. I don’t care what people are saying. Right now, my child is looking up and that is what I’m focused on,” he said.
CCTV footage
Friday’s incident was captured by CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras surrounding the pool at the Gasparillo facility.
The Sunday Express was yesterday allowed to view the footage, which since Friday had been handed over to the police when officers visited the location.
In the near-ten-minute-long video, Skylar, who is seen not wearing a life vest or flotation device, is observed bathing unattended in the children’s pool at the facility.
The video shows her parents sitting under the tents, about four feet away from the pool, with their backs turned to her.
At around the one-minute mark, Skylar is seen leaving the children’s pool and walking towards the stairs of the slide in the adult pool.
She comes down the slide, drops into the pool, and is not seen emerging from the water.
A minute later, her parents are seen searching around the children’s pool for her, with the search continuing for several minutes.
The Sunday Express was not shown the footage when she was pulled from the pool.
In the footage, about 40 patrons can be seen in and around the pool area.
Several children are seen using the slide in the adult area, while adults are supervising them.
Police officers from the Gasparillo Police Station responded to a call and were told by the child’s parents that she had been bathing in a pool with other children when she was discovered unresponsive.
She was removed from the pool by persons at the facility, and Emergency Health Services (EHS) was contacted.
EHS personnel responded and reportedly detected signs of life before rushing the child to the SFGH, where she was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit.
Police said the pool where the incident occurred is 45 feet by 20 feet (13.7 metres by six metres) in area, and between three and five feet (0.9 metres and 1.5 metres) in depth.
‘Parents should be attentive’
Speaking with the Sunday Express at the site yesterday, a spokesperson of Bumper Jumperz Fun Park said Friday’s incident is concerning, as it was the first of its kind at the park, which has been in operation for the last 15 months.
Operations continued at the park yesterday.
The spokesperson, who asked to go unnamed, said there were protocols in place to avert such accidents.
However, he said the safety of children on the compound was the primary responsibility of parents and guardians.
He added that while staff had experience with children with autism, they were not notified that Skylar was autistic.
In the last three weeks, he said the facility was left without a lifeguard, but were actively searching for another.
“We have clear signs when you enter and all around the property that there are no lifeguards on duty, and others saying that parents must accompany children in and out of the pool. We also had two pool guards on duty; they oversee the pool,” he added.
Urging parents to be more attentive to their children, he said:
“It is up to the parents to look after their children, and I am urging parents to be more attentive, more vigilant. The signage throughout the park and our policies are proactive. Our team is reactive.”
He added that while he was not present at the time of the incident, he was told by staff that an alarm was not raised.
“We have steps in place that if an alarm is raised, we sound the horn, we pull everyone from the pool and we conduct a thorough search,” he said.
He said life vests and flotation devices were also sold at “affordable” rates to ensure safety, with prices starting at $30.
He said he had spoken with Skylar’s parents on Friday evening and the team continued to pray for her well-being.
“We are praying for the best. Going forward, we are asking parents, wherever they go in the water to pay attention to children, especially children with special needs. Parents need to be attentive,” he said.
