MELBOURNE, Florida – A 3-year-old boy was airlifted to Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital in Orlando after being found in a pool at his residence located on Blue Heron Drive in Melbourne, Florida on Monday afternoon.
Around 5 p.m., Brevard County Fire Rescue crews responded to the home after his parents discovered him in the pool. BCFR would not release anymore details about the incident.
Florida loses more children under age five to drowning than any other state, according to the Florida Department of Health. Annually in Florida, enough children to fill three to four preschool classrooms drown and do not live to see their fifth birthday.
According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, drowning is a leading cause of injury death for young children ages 1 to 4. For toddlers (children ages 1 to 4 years), swimming pools pose the greatest risk of submersion injury.
Florida has the highest unintentional drowning rate in the nation for the 1–4 year old age group with a drowning rate of 7.54 per 100,000 population. Brevard County has nearly twice the statewide rate of unintentional drownings.
Photo credit: BCFR. Chart credit: FDOH
