Swimming Pool Accidents

Personal Injury

Swimming Pool Accidents

SWIMMING POOL ACCIDENT ATTORNEYS

A lot of us will be jumping into a swimming pool over the Summer, but not many of us will be thinking about our risks for drowning. Swimming pool accidents can be devastating to a family. One moment, everything seems fine, the next moment your child is fighting for their life or has even become a victim of drowning. Drowning accidents happen in public pools, hotels, motels, water parks, and other locations. During the hot summer days, many of us enjoy taking advantage of public and private swimming pools without paying any attention to the obvious dangers a pool can present. A day in the sun at a pool which has turned tragic for a family cannot be fully understood by others. There are few more terrible and deadly accidents than those that involve water.

It does not matter whether they take place at a homeowner’s association pool, private residence, or a apartment pool, pool accidents can leave families and friends wondering what went wrong. Randy W. Ferguson has an extensive history of representing pool accident victims and their family members in Alabama. The Law Firm of Ferguson & Ferguson has more than 45 years of combined experience representing drowning victims. If you or a loved one has been injured or died in a swimming accident, call swimming pool accident attorney Randy W. Ferguson now. We offer a no obligation, FREE CONSULTATION to all swimming pool accident victims and their families. Call 256-534-3435 or 1-800-752-1998 now. We are here to help.

Swimming Pool Regulations

A premises liability lawsuit can be filed if the swimming pool operator did not follow regulations for securing or maintaining the condition of the pool or its surroundings. Swimming pool accident nightmares happen too often when pool safety regulations are not conscientiously followed and the Virginia Graeme Baker Act is violated. Public swimming pools in Alabama must be in compliance with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act. The act provides pool and spa drain cover standards and other minimum required standards. Pool accidents can leave victims, especially younger children, with such catastrophic injuries that their lives and those of their family will be forever changed. Huntsville and Decatur drowning accidents come about in private pools, hotels, motels, parks, water parks, and other locations when supervision fails in their duty, or when faulty gates, drains or other hazards endanger a swimmer or a child who has entered an area that should have been restricted. When the victim does survive, their lives are often changed forever, as underwater accidents frequently result in brain damage due to the lack of oxygen suffered in the incident. Many of these Huntsville accidents are the result of negligence and when this is the case, it is necessary to seek a Huntsville drowning accident lawyer to address the legal matters of the claim or lawsuit.

Lawyers Helping Swimming Pool Accident & Drowning Victims

Seeking compensation after a tragic drowning accident requires the skill of a Decatur or Huntsville, Alabama personal injury lawyer with extensive experience in filing a lawsuit or claim against the individual or entity that did not uphold their duty whether in maintenance, supervision or other aspect of the case. Sadly, a high percentage of these heartbreaking cases involve young children, and parents and families suffer unimaginable grief when they have lost a loved one or their child suffers permanent injury. Huntsville attorney Randy W. Ferguson has spent his career protecting the rights of the injured and their families to compensation after drowning accident cases or other types of personal injury accidents.

We can assist the families or the injured individual in the legal process in all types of drowning cases, including:

  • Near drowning
  • Summer camp drowning
  • Pool accidents
  • Beach accidents
  • Child drowning accidents
  • Water park, resort or hotel drowning
  • Electrocutions
  • Apartment pool drowning
  • Boating and recreational drowning accidents

Common Causes of Huntsville Drowning Accidents

Common causes of pool accidents include the following:

  • Lack of or damaged pool ladders preventing easy exit
  • Non-working pool lights
  • Electrical accidents
  • Missing safety equipment such as throwing ropes with attached buoys and Shepherds hooks
  • Unclear or murky water
  • Infrequent or inadequate pool upkeep
  • Overcrowded pool
  • Untrained, too few or negligent lifeguards
  • Pool security fence in disrepair
  • Defective self closing and self latching gates
  • Swimming pool drain cover accidents
  • Pool operator negligence
  • Boating accidents
  • Spa accidents
  • Depth markers are insufficient or absent
  • Swimming pool not filled in accordance with depth markers
  • Baby sitter or homeowner negligence
  • Negligence in maintaining water chemicals and treatment
  • Lifeguard negligence
  • Missing safety lines separating the shallow and deep ends of the pool
  • Slick pool decks

How to Prevent Swimming Pool Accidents

You can prevent pool accidents by doing the following:

  • Make sure your children take a swimming class
  • Install pool alarms
  • Equip drains with aniit-entrapment covers
  • Mark shallow water with numbers
  • Maintain all electric shock hazards
  • Have babysitters and you learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation
  • Keep an eye on all children
  • Stop children from running around pool
  • Avoid horseplay and unsafe diving
  • Do not swim while lightning present
  • Keep safety equipment by pool (ropes, pole and flotation device)
  • Never drink and swim
  • Makee sure all pool fences are secure and maintained
  • Keep your pool deck clear of toys and obstructions
  • Do not swim in dark
  • Always have a phone nearby and emergency numbers
  • Never leave furniture near fence that could make climbing over the fence possible

Swimming Pool Accident Statistics

Centers for Disease Control reports about 10 people a day die as a result of drowning accidents. About 3,500 drown while swimming, and another 350 die from drowning as a result of boating accidents. It is estimated that it takes less than 5 minutes and under 2 inches of water for a child to drown. And every year there are hundreds of Alabama adults that suffer serious injuries at either private or public swimming pools. Throughout the country, unfortunately, hundreds of children die each year in a pool related accident. It is estimated that most of these deaths occur to children under the age of 3. Around 76% of these fatalities are children under the age of 5. Further, hundreds of thousands of people are injured. When there is a swimming pool injury it is usually because there was either a faulty designed or constructed pool, or there were improper safe guards and security for the small children or the pool was improperly maintained. Injuries can range from the not so serious taking in too much water while swimming, to improper chemicals or chemical maintenance in the pool, to more serious contusions, broken bones or more serious injuries such as paralyzation or coma. At least five thousand (5,000) additional small children suffer permanent injury like nerve damage requiring future medical care and treatment and expensive in house care or hospitalization for the permanent neurological disability.

Consult with a Huntsville Drowning Attorney

The owner of the private pool or public pool does have responsibility. If you have been injured in a swimming pool accident, you should immediately contact Huntsville attorney Randy W. Ferguson to assist you. We will assist you in getting the homeowner’s insurance information or the public facility or private facility’s insurance information so that medical bills do not over burden you. Our firm is here to help you recover lost damages after an accident has occurred on another person’s property, such as a public pool, in which a breach of duty or a negligent act has occurred. If you have lost a child due to a drowning accident, do not wait another minute longer to call our firm. We have dedicated our careers to helping families get back on their feet after an accident has traumatically altered their life. We understand that no amounts of money will ever being back your loved one, but we are committed to ensuring that justice is sought and the negligent party is held responsible. To learn more about our firm and how we are ready to help, call our Huntsville or Decatur office today. We are also available 24/7 to visit you at Huntsville Hospital, Decatur General Hospital, Crestwood Medical Center or Parkway Medical Center. Call now. Call 256-534-3435 or 1-800-752-1998.

Huntsville Office Location:
303 Williams Avenue SW
Suite 321
Huntsville, AL 35801

Our swimming pool accident attorneys serve every city and county in the State of Alabama.