Cassandra Jackson and her 10-year-old son Johnny had a fun day planned: they would visit a swimming pool near their home. After hours of playing and bathing, it was time to go home. Johnny began to feel ill and told his Mom that he felt sleepy. She didn’t react, assuming that he was tired from the hours he’d spent playing in the sun. The boy went to his room to rest. An hour later, Cassandra went to check in on him. She discovered his mouth covered in foam – and that he was not breathing, NBC reports.
Cassandra rushed to a hospital, but it was too late. Johnny didn’t make it. When doctors examined him they determined asphyxiation by drowning as cause of death. Cassandra was shocked and didn’t understand how this could have happened.
This unusual phenomenon is called late or dry drowning, and can occur up to 72 hours after taking a bath or swallowing water. It can happen to both children and adults, although children are more exposed to the risk.
Dry drowning damages the lining of the lungs and hinders the lungs’ essential function: to get oxygen into the blood and carbon dioxide out of the blood. The terrifying part is that the effect can be delayed and end up with choking.
“I never knew that a child could walk around and talk with their lungs filled with water,” Cassandra Johnson told Todaysshow.com.
“He was a very loving boy. Full of life. He was my little man.”
If you recognize these symptoms and immediately see a doctor, lives can be saved. Doctors first and foremost recommend to keep an eye on three symptoms that can indicate that the brain is not getting enough oxygen.
The symptoms are:
* Difficulty breathing.
* Extreme tiredness.
* Changes in behavior. For example is the child is abnormally cranky or combative.
This tragic event broke my heart. No parent should have to experience such a tragic thing. That’s why it is so important that every parent read this. Especially now during summer.
Together, we can help spread the word to reduce the risk of this happening to more kids. If just one share saves a life, it is well, well worth it.
Watch this news clip about the tragic accident:
Photos: YouTube
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