North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

A teenager, who witnesses say could not swim, drowned Saturday in a public pool in High Point, NC. It is unknown why the 17 year old Anthony Hayes was in nearly 13 feet of water when it has been reported that he was unable to swim.

North Carolina law requires that there be a minimum of 24 square feet of water surface area, per person, in areas of the pool that are deeper than 5 feet. Investigators also report that there were 5 lifeguards on staff at the time of the incident. One of the lifeguards noticed the teen under water in the deep end and he retrieved the teen and immediately started CPR.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reports that drowning is the second leading cause of death in children ages 1 through 19, with toddlers and teenage boys being the highest risk. The AAP recommends that children above the age of 4 learn how to swim.

Our North Carolina attorneys are familiar with the laws governing both public and private swimming pools.

The federal Pool and Safety Act went into effect in December 2008, yet hundreds of pool owners in North Carolina have still not complied with the law, and are at risk of having their pool closed. The federal law applies to public access pools, and state regulations that mirror the federal law have also been enacted.

These laws apply to public pools as well as those in hotels, gyms, apartment complexes, and subdivisions. They provide safety guidelines that require, among other things, that said pools be equipped with drain covers that prevent jewelry, hair, fingers, and toes from being sucked into a drain.

According to the NC Division of Environmental Health, as many as 1,000 pools statewide might be closed. Mecklenburg County has already received more than 1,000 public pool permit applications. While most have already been approved, some permits that were granted are now being revoked and pools are being closed, as random inspections are finding that the required changes were not actually made. Mecklenburg County Health Department will continue to conduct random inspections, and will close pools where necessary.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission reported 83 entrapments involving swimming pool drains from 1999 to 2008. Of those entrapments, 11 were fatalities, most involving children under the age of 15.

Continue reading "Is Your Local Swimming Pool Safe?" »