A YOUNG boy drowned yesterday in a swimming pool in Navan, Co Meath. Gardaí said the eight-year-old was participating in a public swimming session in the Aura LeisureLink at about 3.20pm when he “got into difficulty”.
An ambulance was called to the pool and paramedics attempted to resuscitate the boy before he was taken to Navan General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Gardaí in Navan have begun an investigation into the incident. The swimming pool was closed yesterday evening and will remain closed today while management and gardaí examine the circumstances surrounding the drowning.
A Garda spokesman said the State Pathologist’s office had been informed of the incident and that a postmortem examination was to take place today.
The public swimming pool is owned by Meath County Council and operated by Aura Sport and Leisure Management Ltd.
A spokesman for Aura said eight lifeguards were on duty and that a number of people were in the pool at the time of the incident.
“The youngster was seen in difficulty in the water and he was taken from the water by a lifeguard who attended to him at the poolside,” he said.
“The emergency procedure was activated, the pool evacuated and emergency services notified,” he added.
The spokesman said staff on duty are satisfied they did all they could, and the investigation will take in to account all the practices and procedures at the facility.
“The whole incident is a huge cause of shock and distress to the staff . . . The company would like to express its sincerest condolences to the family concerned.”
