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After near drowning, family says lifesaving equipment missing from Lumiere pool

Family members said the boy was underwater for at least two minutes before being given CPR by hotel staff.
Credit: KSDK
First responders on the scene of a reported near drowning at the pool of the Lumiere Place Hotel in St. Louis Sunday night.

ST. LOUIS — Sunday night, a boy was rushed to the hospital after he nearly drowned in the pool at the Lumiere Place Hotel. Now, family members of the 9-year-old say the hotel's pool was missing critical safety devices.

Family members said the boy was underwater for at least two minutes before being given CPR by hotel staff.

Monday afternoon, we went back to the hotel pool to see what safety devices were in place. There was a rope dividing the shallow from the deep ends. But family members say that safety precaution wasn't there Sunday night during their pool party.

As a result, they say the child managed to drift into the deep end where sank. There was also no lifeguard on scene, but there is no requirement for the hotel to have one.

"Hotels with pools that are larger than 2200 square-feet are required to have a lifeguard on duty, but most hotels don't have pools that size. A 2200-square-foot pool is very large," said Captain Leon Whitener of the St. Louis Fire Department.

But first responders do say they didn't see another safety item that night: a reacher that can help pull distressed swimmers out of the water.

"I did not observe that. I believe the police did go back for their investigation to see if one was available," said Whitener.

In the meantime, family members told 5 On Your Side that due to swelling in his brain, the 9-year-old experienced 11 seizures before being stabilized. They say he is still in critical condition but is improving.

"The doctors did state last night that a lot of the tests came back normal, so that's a good sign," Whitener said. "But in a situation like this, you just have to wait and see if there's going to be long-term effects."

The hotel told us an investigation was ongoing and that they had no comment at this time. However, the St Louis Police Department said the child abuse unit is investigating the incident.

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