A swimming pool can be a place for fun, but safety precautions are very important. An 8-year-old girl was killed this week after being sucked into a pipe at a hotel swimming pool in Houston, US.
Aliyah Jaico, died after being sucked into a swimming pool pipe at a DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Houston, Texas.
Her body was found about 13 hours later.
“We put them poles in there almost 20 feet, and we saw her little hand and part of her body, so we got the fire department back out there. It appears the pump was malfunctioning because the open pipe she ended in was supposed to be pushing water out,” Miller said, reported the New York Post.
“And right beside that pipe, there was another pipe that actually had a big plastic filter like screen on the front that’s supposed to be sucking water in. So I know there was one speculation last night from somebody that knows quite a bit and everything was that the pump was wired wrong. So it was sucking instead of pushing," he said.
“She was wedged in there so very, very tight,” Miller said. “I don’t think she decided, ‘I am going to swim in here and see what’s here.’
“Many of us had to wipe tears from our eyes,” he said of the search team. “This is one of the saddest ones we’ve seen in a good while.”
An autopsy revealed Aliyah drowned and suffered from 'mechanical asphyxiation' (when an object or a physical force stops you from breathing).
LEGAL ACTIONS AND VIOLATIONS
Following the incident, inspectors discovered multiple violations at the pool.
These included a lack of a pre-opening inspection after a remodel and non-compliance with federal safety laws designed to prevent drownings.
Further investigation revealed that the approved plans for the pool remodel did not match the actual construction, specifically regarding the lazy river flow suction and return piping.
HILTON HOTEL SAYS PROPERTY 'INDEPENDENTLY OWNED'
A Hilton spokesperson told ABC 7 in a statement, “Hilton offers our sincere condolences to the family and loved ones for the tragic loss of a young girl at the DoubleTree by Hilton Houston Brookhollow," reported the post.
Aliyah's mother, Daniela, is heartbroken. In a social media post, she wrote, "Thank you, my love, for the eight years you gave me by your side. Thank you, my girl, for teaching me what love is and a noble heart."
