Pool and Spa Accidents 

As Flordians, we spend a lot of time in and around swimming pools and spas for most of the year but particularly in the summer. Any discussion of pool and spa accidents inevitably turns to drownings.. According to the Florida Health website, Florida was ranked the highest in the U.S. for unintentional drowning death rate among children ages 1 to 4 years from 2017 to 2019. Florida had the highest unintentional drowning death rate of 3.28 per 100,000 population among children 0 to 9 years of age compared to other states. However, focusing solely on drownings ignores many non-fatal pool and spa accidents that happen annually.

While drownings are tragic, thousands more are injured every year in accidents in or around pools or spas. In fact, from 2016 through 2018, there were an estimated 6,600 injuries treated in emergency rooms each year involving children younger than 15. Many of these involved non-fatal near-drownings, while many others were poolside accidents and accidents in the pool or spa involving slips, falls, and diving accidents.

Non-Fatal Pool And Spa Accidents Can Be Devastating

Many injuries suffered in accidents in and around pools and spas result in life-altering injuries that are no less tragic than fatal drownings. In fact, many non-fatal drownings result in serious brain damage that can lead to long-term or even life-long health issues. Known as anoxic brain injuries, these injuries result from near-drowning events where the brain is deprived of oxygen long enough to result in brain damage that can be both severe and permanent. Symptoms can include memory loss, vision loss, cognitive issues, loss of movement, and other symptoms up to and including persistent coma.

Anoxic brain injury is only one kind of brain injury common in swimming pool and spa accidents. Many accidents in or around pools and spas result in blows to the head leading to traumatic brain injuries, including:

• Falls or slips poolside, resulting in your head striking the concrete pool deck
• Diving into water that is too shallow and hitting your head on the bottom of the pool. Diving is the fifth leading cause of spinal cord injuries.
• Tile or other slippery surfaces in or at the edge of the pool that could lead you to slip and hit your head on the edge of the pool deck

Many of these and other poolside injuries result in traumatic brain injuries, which kill 150 people every day. Severe TBIs often have lifelong consequences, such as impairment of higher-order brain functions, paralysis, impaired speech, coma, memory loss, an inability to focus, particularly on complex issues, and emotional problems. These problems can result in years of treatment and could even require care for the rest of your life. Such losses of function can require years of treatment, even life-long medical care. Such care can be extremely expensive, even in the short term. Life-long care obviously can easily amount to millions of dollars. Falls – including at pools or spas – are the top cause of TBIs.

If You Have Been Injured In A Pool Or Spa Accident

If you or a loved one were injured in an accident in or around a pool or spa, you might be entitled to compensation. If your accident resulted from someone’s negligence, they could be liable for your injuries. You should seek professional advice to see if you can recover damages for your injuries. Contact Armour Law Group, Lake Nona Personal Injury Attorneys for a free consultation to discuss your case. Pool and spa accidents can be devastating even if drowning does not occur.