Drowning and near tragedy involving children sparks warning for parents and caregivers over summer

Tuesday, 5 January 2021

The incident happened in the Miranda Holiday Park pool area on Monday evening.

The drowning of a young girl that left a family heartbroken, and a near tragedy a few hours later, has sparked a warning for all parents and caregivers this summer.

While the exact circumstances around the incidents remain unclear, both involved young children in and around water on a national holiday sparking a warning from Water Safety for all children under five to be constantly and actively supervised around water.

Around 4.35pm on Monday, police, ambulance, and a rescue helicopter were called to Lake Rotokawau, a small lake east of Rotorua, after a girl drowned.

Local kaumātua Dr Ken Kennedy was told the girl was four-years-old.

A rāhui has been put on Lake Rotokawau, east of lake Rotorua, after a girl drowned there on Monday afternoon.

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Police said it appeared a medical event may have sparked the incident, but St John said it was a water incident.

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Kennedy, who is a Ngāti Rangiteaorere Koromatua Council co-chair, was among those who performed karakia at the site on Tuesday and placed a rāhui on the lake. Police said the girl’s death had been referred to the coroner.

Three and a half hours later, a near-tragedy unfolded at the Miranda Holiday Park on the Firth of Thames.

Firefighters were the first emergency responders on the scene and arrived not long after 8pm.

The girl had already been taken out of the pool when firefighters from the Ngatea Volunteer Fire Brigade arrived, chief fire officer Miles Shelley told Stuff.

“We just assisted the people because there was no ambulance there when we first got there.

“Gave them oxygen and what have you, and did what we could.”

Shelley didn't attend the callout, but understood the girl was around five-years-old.

She was in a serious condition when she was flown to Starship by rescue helicopter, a St John alert said. She was in a stable condition on Tuesday.

“Whoever dragged her out obviously did everything right to keep her alive if she's stable this morning … Between what they did and what the fire brigade did before the ambulance got there [it] was enough to keep the girl going,” Shelley said.

He echoed the reminder to keep a close watch on children around water, noting he had been swimming with his granddaughter not long before the siren went off.

St John described the callout as a water incident, but a police spokeswoman said a medical event may have sparked it.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with [the girl] and her family”, a Tuesday morning statement from Miranda Holiday Park said.

Soon after, the park updated that she was recovering well.

“We have heard and facetimed her family! So happy for her and her family! But this is a good reminder to keep our kids safe and watch them at all times as accidents can happen in the blink of an eye.”

While few details about what led to these incidents have been released publicly, however parents are being reminded to keep children within arm's reach as the return of hot weather tempts people into the water.

“We all know how quickly toddlers can move if they want to, so it's critical that you have eyes on them at all times around water,” Water Safety NZ spokesman Ben Christie said.

“Especially when people are on holiday, travelling to different locations they perhaps aren't familiar with. It's critical that people look out for water hazards or potential drowning hazards, and make sure children do not have access to them.”

Anything from a paddling pool to a bucket of water could be a drowning risk for small children, he said.

Under fives around water need constant, active, adult supervision, Christie said.

That means putting down your phone and keeping your eyes on them, as it takes less than 30 seconds for a child to drown.

“Every preventable drowning fatality is a tragedy for a family and a community.”

Preliminary figures from Water Safety New Zealand indicate the preventable fatal drowning toll for the official holiday period is three.

The summer holiday period ran from December 24, 2020 to January 5, 2021.

There were 69 drowning deaths in 2020 which were considered preventable, according to data provided to Water Safety NZ.

Four of those were children aged four and under, but the 15-25 age bracket had the most deaths overall - 14 through the year.