Three recent drowning deaths of children in Iowa have prompted a reminder from state public health officials.
“All three incidents occurred when the person who was watching the child lost track of the child for several minutes,” according to Dennis Klein, the acting State Medical Examiner. A pair of 2-year-old children and a 6-year-old have died from drowning in the last week. In the latest incident, a toddler was found in a family’s swimming pool in Carroll.
It happened Tuesday night. “The best advice for people who have pools is to make sure they have all the required protective equipment, including (pool) covers and fences,” Klein says. But, Klein says the biggest factor in protecting children around water in direct supervision at all times.
“Sometimes it can take less than five minutes of losing track of a child and that child can be in a position where they can drown,” Klein said. About a week ago, a 2-year-old child drowned in a Mahaska County pond and this past weekend, a 6-year-old Newton boy drowned at Lake Red Rock.