Military Man Drowns in Community Swimming Pool

A 33-year-old military man drowned in a community swimming pool during a family retreat sponsored by the Navy. While his wife and children were preparing lunch, the man was seen swimming laps underwater in the pool while the two Lifeguards sat at a picnic table talking to one another. Several minutes later, one of the Lifeguards noticed the man lying motionless on the bottom of the 5′ section of the pool with bubbles coming to the surface. The Lifeguard assumed he was breathing and decided to time him. After several additional minutes, another patron alerted the Lifeguards to the fact that the man wasn’t moving and was in trouble. One of the Lifeguards then walked around the perimeter of the pool, looked down at the victim, then removed her shorts and dove into the pool. The man was removed from the water and CPR was administered. The man was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.

Because the Lifeguards were sitting at a picnic table talking to one another, they were distracted from their ability to provide effective surveillance to anyone in the water. This was a violation of the surveillance procedures advocated for use by Lifeguard Personnel.