The parents of a five-year-old autistic boy who drowned in a hotel swimming pool during a Christmas trip to Disneyland Paris said they wanted to ensure no other family endured the same loss.
Karen Canning and David Bradley, from Derry, are demanding answers over how their son Colum Canning fell into the pool at the Explorers hotel last week and said they wanted to know why a lifeguard was not in place.
Staff at the Thomas Cook-owned three-star Explorers Hotel close to the Disney resort confirmed there had been no lifeguard on duty when Colum fell into the water after disappearing from his mother's view shortly after the family arrived at the venue last Thursday.
The boy was quickly discovered in the water by another guest who jumped in and dragged him out, but he had already lost consciousness.
Colum died in hospital on Saturday after his parents took the decision to switch his life-support machine off. They agreed to donate their son's organs.
The family had left their Hawthorne Grove home off the Springtown Road in the Creggan area of the city to spend Christmas in Disneyland.
They paid tribute to Colin McEwan who tried to save Colum, Sue Wheal who administered CPR, while they also thanked the hospital staff and Fr Aiden Troy, a priest who recently moved from Belfast to Paris, for their kindness and support.
But the couple said they would be demanding a check of safety measures in the hotel.
"We are very concerned to learn there was no lifeguard on duty. As parents our first instinct is always to protect our children. Therefore, it is very difficult for us to come to terms with the fact there was no-one around to look after them in the pool."
The parents revealed how the child went missing within seconds, before the tragedy quickly unfolded.
"Karen had only turned around to fetch a camera to take a picture of our three children and when she turned she could only see two faces.
"She instantly panicked and could not find him anywhere. At first she thought he was just hiding. The employee on duty at the desk near the pool said he did not see him.
"Not long after Karen noticed the commotion by the pool and just knew it was Colum."
Leader of the nationalist SDLP Mark Durkan is understood to be assisting the family and they have raised questions over the circumstances of their son's death and over safety measures in the hotel.
The parents added: "We will be demanding answers and we will not be letting this go.
"Colum's life must not be in vain and we would hope that lessons will be learned from our son's death that will save lives in the future."
After the tragedy a spokesman for travel agent Thomas Cook said its deepest sympathy was with the family.
Colum will be be buried in Derry tomorrow, but his family have asked the media to respect their privacy and stay away.
PA