St. Louis Injury Lawyer Blog

A woman from Wood River, Illinois is suing the city following the wrongful drowning death of her four-year-old son.

According to a report in the Madison County Record, the lawsuit accuses the City of Wood River for creating unsafe conditions for children. The plaintiff's child had walked through a tunnel and onto a spillway, where he slipped, fell, and was drowned in a retention pond. The suit contends that the city could have done more to prevent children from entering the tunnel, as children had been entering the same tunnel for years in order to swim in the retention pond.

The personal injury lawsuit, filed in Madison County Circuit Court, seeks damages for loss of society and mental anguish caused by the child's untimely death, which allegedly could have been prevented by safer conditions. Six counts are included in the complaint for a total of $300,000 in damages sought.

Going for a swim may seem an innocent enough prospect for children. Yet statistics show that parents should be wary of allowing young children to swim or be near water without supervision. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that drowning is the leading cause of injury death for children ages 1 through 4.

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The family of a drowning victim has alleged that negligence on the part of Holiday Shores and its lifeguards led to the drowning and death of a man swimming in the lake with his family.

On a late summer afternoon, a man began coughing and struggling to swim in the lake. Other people in the lake began screaming, alerting the lifeguard about the man's struggle, but it is alleged the lifeguard did not respond in time. Witnesses saw the lifeguard using her cell for texting or internet use throughout the day. Despite making several dives to attempt finding the body, the man was not found for more than an hour.

The lawsuit has revealed that the lifeguard sent and received more than 200 text messages on the day of the incident, including several messages in the minutes leading up to the drowning incident.

Represented by WWFG attorney Michael P. Glisson, the family has filed a suit against Holiday Shores with three counts, including wrongful death, survival act and family expense act. The case is expected to go to trial in 12-18 months.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 3,443 people died in fatal unintentional drownings in 2007.

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Early Saturday morning, authorities recovered the bodies of a mother, her son and a family friend's son from a St. Claire County lake. The mother, Kathy Baxmeyer, 40, had taken her son, Kadin Baxmeyer, 7, and her son's friend, Steven "Austin" Baum, 6, out to celebrate her son's birthday.

By midnight on Friday, Austin's mother had been unable to get in contact with Kathy Baxmeyer. Worried, she reported her son as missing to the Monroe County Sheriff's Department. When authorities arrived at the Baxmeyer residence, family members were asleep and under the impression that Kathy and the boys were still at the movie they had planned on seeing for the birthday celebration.

Upon finding boots and gloves near a lake by the residence, police used dogs to track the smell from the items. Investigators had their suspicions confirmed when the dogs led them to the water's edge. Diving teams from several fire departments worked for hours before recovering the bodies in 12 feet of water.

Authorities suspect that the boys made their way out onto the icy lake and the mother followed, trying to save them. At this point, all three deaths have been ruled an accident and no charges have been made.

According to the CDC, in 2005, there were 3,582 fatal unintentional drownings in the United States, averaging ten deaths per day. In Illinois, from 1989 to 1998, there was an average of 138 drownings each year. More than one in four fatal drowning victims are children 14 and younger. For every child who dies from drowning, another four received emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries. Nonfatal drownings can cause brain damage that may result in long-term disabilities including memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning (i.e., permanent vegetative state).

Continue reading "Tragic Deaths In Waterloo Illinois Drowning Accident" »