Boy Dies Two Days After Accident at Disney World Pool
May 14, 2013
Tampa, FL (Law Firm Newswire) May 13, 2013 – A teenage boy died two days after being pulled from a swimming pool at Disney World.
Anthony Johnson, 13, was playing with friends in a pool at Disney’s Pop Century Resort. His family was visiting from Missouri.
Family members said Anthony was jumping in and out of the water with his friends. When his absence was noticed, he was spotted at the bottom of the pool and pulled out within minutes, according to WFTV.
Tampa personal injury lawyer Robert Joyce commented, “Swimming pools claim an alarming number of lives each year. Even when trained lifeguards are present, there are significant risks to safety. When lifeguards are absent, parents need to closely watch children and also teach them to watch out for each other.”
The pool had no lifeguards on duty; posted signs warned hotel residents to swim at their own risk.
“Liability on the part of the resort would be difficult to prove in a case like this,” added Joyce. “However, I cannot help but think that having trained lifeguards watching each pool is a prudent policy that would go a long way to preventing such tragedies.”
William Cybulski, a firefighter on vacation from Buffalo, told WKMG that he helped another vacationing firefighter and a doctor give Anthony CPR after he was pulled from the pool.
Cybulski’s partner, Crystal Loschiavo, told reporters she tried to keep Anthony’s family calm. She said his brother was very upset and said he did not want anything to happen to Anthony.
Disney released a statement saying they were saddened by the death and are offering “care and assistance” to the family.
Shortly after the accident, Walt Disney Co. announced a new admission policy requiring all children under 14 to be accompanied by a visitor over 14. The parks have been popular among parents who treated them as a sort of day-care during school vacations. In announcing the new policy, Disney did not mention the recent drowning, but is perhaps seeking to limit its overall liability exposure.
Disney’s Pop Century Resort is part of the “ESPN Wide World of Sports” complex in Lake Buena Vista, just outside Orlando.
To learn more or to contact a Tampa personal injury attorney at the Joyce & Reyes Law Firm, P.A. visit http://www.joyceandreyespa.com/ or call 1.888.771.1529.
Joyce and Reyes Law Firm, P.A.
307 S Hyde Park Ave,
Tampa, FL 33606
Call: 813.251.2007
