JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office is investigating the drowning of a 3-year-old in a neighborhood near the Mandarin area.
The 3-year-old drowned in the backyard pool of a home on Cornelia Drive on Thursday.
“What we now know is that a 3-year-old child was transported from the residence after being found unresponsive in a pool by the father," JSO's Sergeant Steve Rudlaff said. "The pool has a protective barrier around it. At some point, the 3-year-old child was able to get through the barrier and into the pool."
Police said the child was then taken to a local hospital where he died.
With drownings being one of the top causes of deaths among Florida's children, ranking third for kids under the age of 17, Jon Edenfield with Great Strides Rehabilitation in Jacksonville shares the importance of safety around any body of water.
"Just think we all need to be aware this can happen very easily and it only takes a matter of seconds," Edenfield told First Coast News.
Edenfield said it's important to supervise children around water at all times, place barriers up for protection and make sure your child wears a lifejacket.
"We need to make a conscious effort to install and utilize locks, door alarms, pool fences, automatic door closers and latches to keep children from accessing where water may be," said Edenfield.
With many Jacksonville city pools opening this weekend, coupled with what's expected to be a busy time at the beach during Memorial Day weekend, Edenfield said safe swimming practices can hopefully help prevent future deaths.
"For those children who are old enough, we want to teach them basic swimming skills and that means as young as infants," Edenfield said.
Families may be eligible for free swimming vouchers thanks to new legislation signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis; click here for more information on them.