Man Drowns While Swimming in Six Mile Cove

On September 2, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

Though I’ve written extensively about the potential for drownings in swimming pools, it is important to point out that fatal accidents can occur in natural bodies of water as well. Many Las Vegas and Clark County residents prefer to head for the great outdoors for their aquatic recreational activities. Unfortunately, sometimes a relaxing day at the lake can turn tragic in the blink of an eye.

That’s what happened on August 30 at Lake Mohave. Authorities with the National Park Service say that a 20-year old man drowned at Six Mile Cove. Witnesses say that the unidentified man was underwater for at least five minutes before others noticed him missing. That illuminates the scary but inescapable fact that five minutes is all it takes for a human being to die from a lack of oxygen underwater. Though the man was pulled out of the water by witnesses, attempts to resuscitate him by Clark County Fire Department workers and park rangers were unsuccessful. His death marks the fifth drowning in August and eighth of 2010 in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

The article didn’t state exactly what caused the man to drown. But common causes of lake drownings include:

  • fatigue
  • the inability to swim in deep water
  • entanglement in underwater weeds
  • head injuries sustained by diving into shallow waters
  • boating accidents 

Sometimes, a dangerous condition (such as a strong current or underwater foliage) can exist in a natural body of water. It is the responsibility of the municipality in charge of the recreation area to post warning signs concerning any of these hazards (or in some cases restrict access to these areas altogether).

If a loved one has drowned at a lake and you feel that someone else’s recklessness or negligence was the cause, you should contact a wrongful death lawyer to see about filing suit against those responsible.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Hotel Pool Injuries A Common Occurrence During Summer Months in Las Vegas

On August 29, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

Because the weather in the Las Vegas area is so temperate, residents and visitors can enjoy swimming pools almost year round. But tourism tends to increase during the summer months so swimming pool use tends to increase during this time of the year. Unfortunately, that often means a corresponding jump in swimming pool injuries.

In fact, two tragic hotel pool incidents occurred within two days of each other at swimming pools on Las Vegas hotel properties in broad daylight. On August 22 around 5:45pm, Matthew Williams suffered a head injury in the Rehab Pool area of the Hard Rock Hotel on Paradise Road. The 27-year old Oregon man was transported to Sunrise Medical Center, but was pronounced dead due to his injuries. Authorities are still investigating how Williams sustained the head injury.

Less than 48 hours later, a five-year old girl almost drowned at the pool of the Rio Hotel and Casino on Flamingo Road. At about 2pm on August 24, the unidentified girl (who was staying at the hotel) was rescued from the hotel’s pool and taken immediately to University Medical Center, where she was stabilized. Police are still investigating the circumstances of her accident.

I’ve written at length about swimming pool accidents before but these two incidents illustrate how dangerous swimming pools can be – even ones on the properties of large hotels. No matter where you are, it is important that you exercise extreme caution in and around pools and make sure that children are supervised at all times.

If you or a loved one has been injured at a hotel swimming pool due to someone else’s negligence or recklessness, you should consider contacting a personal injury lawyer. 

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Are Pool Alarms Effective In Preventing Child Drowning Deaths?

On August 2, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

The temperate in southern Nevada facilitates swimming pool enjoyment for almost the entire calendar year. Many homeowners in Las Vegas and throughout Clark County take advantage of these conditions by building their own pools in their backyards.

If you’re one of these families, be sure to take appropriate measures to prevent accidental drownings. One option is a swimming pool alarm system. But just how effective are these pool alarms?

The Consumer Product Safety Commission conducted a study to determine the reliability of these pool alarm systems. The study looked at two distinct types of pool alarms: those with surface sensors and those which incorporate subsurface sensors. Surface sensors float on top of the water surface, while subsurface sensors are mounted to the side of the pool a few inches below the waterline. Both are equipped with remote receivers that are mounted inside the home and which sound an alarm if the sensors are activate by moving water – such as when a small child falls into the pool.

How did these systems fare?

One of the main goals of the testing was to determine if either type of alarm system recorded false positives – that is, if they emitted alarms when the water was disturbed by natural forces such as wind, rain, or falling debris (like leaves or pinecones). The study found that the subsurface sensors operated more reliably and with fewer false positives than the surface sensors did.

However, the study concluded that pool alarms should not be used as a replacement for other types of safety measures (such as constant adult supervision or effective pool fencing). Broadly speaking, the test showed an alarm response time of between 7 and 30 seconds if the distance between alarm sensor and the entry point of the water disturbance (i.e. where a child would fall in) was 35 feet or less. However, when it is at distances greater than 35 feet, alarm response times were substantially delayed.  Some systems even failed to activate until two minutes after the child fell in!

Considering that a child can drown to death in the span of five minutes, the delayed response time could mean the difference between a child surviving the accident or perishing due to a lack of oxygen.

In short, pool alarm systems should be viewed as a complementary safety device as opposed to a primary one. Therefore, if your pool has an alarm system but no other safety measures are taken, you may be found liable in a wrongful death lawsuit if a child were to drown in your pool. 

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Child Drowning Statistics in Nevada Pools

On July 30, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

Whenever a child dies, it is a gut wrenching, terrible tragedy. But when a child drowns to death in a pool, it makes the tragedy even more difficult because the death is usually preventable. In many cases, the catastrophic event could have been avoided if not for the negligence of another person or company.

Clark County has compiled statistics of drownings and related data over the last ten years. When looking at drownings and near drownings for Clark County children 14 and under in 2009 (the latest year for which data was available),

  • The number of fatal drownings was more than double the total recorded just five years earlier.
  • 77% of them happened in residential pools.
  • 90% of the fatal drownings involved children less than five years of age.

If a child drowns in a backyard swimming pool, the homeowner could be sued for wrongful death depending on the circumstances. Sometimes, parents let their kids swim at a neighbor’s pool with the understanding that they will be supervised. But this is often not the case – and it only takes about five minutes for a child to drown.

There have also been numerous stories of a child wandering into a pool and drowning. If the pool (be it residential or municipal) does not have barriers which are designed to keep young children out, then the pool owners or operators might be found liable in a wrongful death lawsuit.

A qualified child wrongful death attorney can probably answer your questions relating to child drownings and pool owners’ liability. 

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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Swimming Pool Accidents

On July 16, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

One of the big advantages of our part of the country is that it’s warm enough to enjoy swimming pools almost year round. That means more weeks of splashing, diving, and other aquatic fun for your family.

swimming pool, accident, injury, injuries, drowning, Las VegasOn the other hand, the fact that swimming pools are in use so much increases the risk of swimming pool accidents. Some accidents are quite minor – like swallowing a large quantity of water or scraping your toe on the pool bottom. But others can result in more devastating and long-lasting consequences.

The accident that gets the most attention (and rightfully so) is drowning. The most common scenario is a young child who swims without adequate supervision or who wanders into an unattended pool. Even if the victim manages to be resuscitated and avoid death, underwater submersion for even a few minutes can lead to future memory problems or learning disabilities, significant brain damage, or even an indefinite comatose or vegetative state.

But there are other ways that injuries can occur in and around swimming pools. Slip and fall accidents are frequent because the surface around the pool is usually wet and slick. The pool’s chemicals can cause burning eyes and skin rashes if applied too liberally to the water, or people can inhale toxic fumes if they mishandle the chemicals themselves.

One of the most tragic types results from both children and adults who unintentionally dive into shallow water. Minor injuries include strained arm or shoulder muscles or broken bones; but if the victim strikes his or her head on the pool bottom, he or she could suffer a traumatic brain injury, become paralyzed, lapse into a coma, or even die.

The owner of the pool, whether it’s a homeowner or a public facility, is responsible for the safety of those who use it. If you have suffered a swimming pool accident that you feel was caused by the recklessness or negligence of someone else, you should contact a qualified personal injury attorney.

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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The Tragedy of Child Drowning Deaths

On July 16, 2010, In Nevada Personal Injury Information, By admin

By Farhan Naqvi, Personal Injury Lawyer in Las Vegas

It’s something that no one likes to think about, but hundreds of times each year children drown to death in the Las Vegas area. It’s one of the most frequent causes of accidental death nationwide for kids between the ages of 1 and 14.

Drowning deaths can happen:

  • in a large swimming pool in one of the posh hotels on the Strip
  • in a motel swimming pool in Henderson
  • in a community center pool in Green Valley
  • in a swimming pool at an RV park in Clark County
  • while boating on Lake Mead
  • in a pond, river, or stream in the mountains east of Pahrump
  • in a bathtub inside a Summerlin home

One of the most common places where child drownings occur is in the backyard swimming pool of a private residence. Five minutes is sometimes all it takes for a kid to fall into the water and drown.

What are the most frequent causes of child drowning deaths?

  • No supervision- the absence of a lifeguard or responsible adult who vigilantly monitors kids in the water.
  • No lifejackets- kids are required to wear a personal flotation device while in a boat, on a personal watercraft, or while waterskiing or tubing in a lake.
  • No barriers- countless pools have improper fencing (or none at all) – thereby permitting a young child to wander into the pool and drown.
  • No ability to swim- all children should be able to move around in water that is deeper than their height. This allows them to swim out of danger and into shallower waters.

Most swimming pools are supposed to have someone responsible for monitoring the safety of those swimming in it – including backyard pools. If no supervision is present, the owners of the pool could be sued for wrongful death if a child drowns in it. 

About the Editor: Farhan R. Naqvi is a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer who has experience representing victims injured in car accidents, drunk driver crashes, truck wrecks, slip and falls, taxi cab accidents, and bicycle crashes. He also has experience handling spine injury, product liability, underinsured/uninsured driver, and wrongful death cases. If you’ve been seriously hurt in an accident in Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Henderson, Boulder City, Green Valley, or Pahrump, give Farhan a call at 702-553-1000 for a free, no-hassle consultation.

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