Scary moments for Sudbury family as preschooler goes under the water during swim lesson

The family of a three-year-old who had a scare at the Howard Armstrong pool in Hanmer on Monday speaks with CTV News.

The family of a three-year-old boy in Greater Sudbury was traumatized this week when the youngster slipped and fell into the water for about 30 seconds during swimming lessons.

The incident took place on the evening of March 3 on the tot dock at the Howard Armstrong Pool in Hanmer. A lifeguard jumped in to save Caleb.

Caroline Charrette was in the upper viewing area of the pool watching Caleb, her grandson, during his swimming lesson.

“The lifeguard was doing her lesson, one-on-one, but kinda' had her back to the children,” Charette said.

“Caleb slipped off the platform and went under. My little man kicked his feet so hard. He made it back up, but just his little eyes showing … the fear in his eyes.”

Caleb’s mother quickly ran downstairs to the door to access the pool, but found it locked. Charette said she could have easily saved her son if the door was open.

But the lifeguard noticed he was under the water and pulled him to safety after about 30 seconds.

“He was throwing up,” Charette said.

Called an ambulance

“They called the ambulance … Thank God we had a paramedic in the crowd -- off-duty -- came down and came in and checked on Caleb. After that, we had to wait over 25 minutes for an ambulance to show up.”

Charrette said Caleb was one of five children being watched by one lifeguard during the lesson. There should be more, she said, for children that young.

“If the children can’t touch the bottom, two lifeguards,” she said.

“One that could supervise them while they’re on the platform, one to do one-on-one swimming lessons with.”

Charette also questioned why the emergency door was locked.

“I never in my life saw an emergency door locked,” she said.

“Why did it take over 25 minutes for the ambulance to get here? City of Greater Sudbury failed my grandson on Monday evening … so badly and in so many ways. And I don’t want any parent to go through this -- any grandparents, parents, family member … We are scarred by this.”

In response to a question from CTV News, the city provided a statement that said, in part:

“The child’s instructor was assisting another child at the time, and the assistant pool operator who was overseeing the lesson promptly responded by jumping into the pool to retrieve the child.”

“An off-duty paramedic who was present at the time also responded and monitored the child. The child appeared to be all right, but paramedics were called as a precaution. When they arrived, they assessed the situation and determined the child did not require transport to hospital.”

“The city takes unfortunate incidents like this seriously and is reviewing its processes. Our staff have been fully briefed and trained on the necessary steps to prevent and respond to similar situations in the future and we are actively reviewing the paramedics' response to ensure compliance with provincial standards.”

Similar incident

Alexina Martin-Boudreau told CTV News she had a similar experience at the same pool with her oldest son. While she brushed the incident off, she is speaking out now after hearing about Caleb.

“The only reason I brought it up (now) is because I (saw) the post yesterday,” Martin-Boudreau said.

She said other people on social media commented that they had similar issues.

“And I’m like, OK, maybe this is something that something needs to be changed,” Martin-Boudreau said.

“More surveillance or maybe (fewer) kids in a group.”

Charrette said the family is sharing Caleb’s story because she said no parent or grandparent should have to go through what they did.

She said the city must be held accountable for failing to provide proper safety measures.