5-year-old girl drowns in bathtub
May 19, 2008 by Kristina Chew, PhD
Filed under Health
5-year-old Carlee Bennett of Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, apparently drowned in her bathtub on Saturday evening, according to the Fond du Lac Reporter. Carlee had severe autism and was found lying face-down in the bathtub. Her grandmother, a retired nurse, was babysitting her and her two brothers and immediately started administering CPR.
Emergency personnel took Carlee to Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee where doctors were able to restart her heart, Bennett said. But Carlee, who had been without oxygen for as long as 30 minutes, had severe organ damage and likely severe brain damage.
“The way we’ll always remember her is as a loving, happy, giggling little girl,” Bennett said. “Everything to her was funny. She was always smiling, always happy.”
Carlee had a history of seizures but hadn’t had one in a few years, he said. She also had no bump on her head or other marks to suggest she had fallen or hit her head.
Carlee usually bathed in about three inches of water with a few toys, her father said. She had been left alone in the tub in the past for short periods without incident.
There was a similar case here in New Jersey a few years ago in which a little girl around Carlee’s age drowned in her bathtub. Some of my son’s therapists knew this little girl and no one knew what to say.
Heartbreaking, every time I hear of people left alone in places where they really Need supervision.
It happens, shit happens.
I could technically drown in my own saliva.
I do not know what you are deicticallating at, but your index finger is not without some semiotic significance, moral judgement and holier than thou.
You do not think that some happenstance or accident will deprive you of what you consider your being, your essence (existentially speaking) your ability. You don’t know.
I woke up one day with one arm totally paralysed only my logic allowed me to realise this was not a catastrophic event.
I enjoy reading about Charlie and his swimming skills but you know accidents await us all, that is why they are called accidents.
Not long before my mothers death she had an accident which left her lying on the floor in her own faeces, bruised and battered looking for all the world as if I had beaten her.
This was a compromise because she allowed me to go out that night to an event, one of those relatively rare moments in my prior life when I could forget that life, but you see it did not work out.
What does anyone know who has not had this life, who has not had the duties of 24/7/365 care?
My mum lay on the floor, in pain in her own shit, and she did that to allow me some respite. RESPECT!
I know I always have to watch Charlie. With summer coming, we’ll be going back to the ocean, and it’s not easy to teach him that he can’t go out too far.
There was another drowning this week. Ashley Brock of Maine and she was six:
http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2008/05/ashley-brock-2002-2008.html
I just posted a link to another drowning of a little girl on the spectrum that happened the other day in Maine. It is probably in moderation.
I think we are more observant about incidents involving autism because we are primed, that is our absorbing interest, but please let us not forget that children drown everyday, even children with no disability or difference at all, that is no less of a loss , no less sad for those who are involved.
These two were surprising to me since they involved girls and for years now I have read and seen on the news reports of boys drowning and in 2008 two girls within one week is alarming.
What also happens this time of year and has nothing to do with autism is the number of parents and caregivers, babysitters etc that leave children in hot cars while they go to work or shopping with the kids expiring. Last year I notified security when I parked next to a car that had a dog inside with no windows and they ended up breaking the window to save the animal.
Here is an article I wrote after an incident.
It is called – keeping children on the autism spectrum safe:
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art40928.asp
I already posted a comment about Ashley, the little girl who drowned Sunday evening, on a previous post about swimming/drowning. I think it was overlooked with the debate on the restraining order going on.
I blogged about Ashley, too. She was a year behind my son in the same schools. We crossed paths at speech therapy and my son ate lunch with her at school. Our whole community is devastated at her loss. Her parents and twin sister are coping as well as could be expected, but everyone is still in shock.
Ashley saw the neighbors swimming pool the day before and wanted to go for a swim. There are two fences and gates, around her yard and the neighbors’. She slipped under the fences, stripped off her clothes like she was going to take a bath, and climbed a step ladder and got into the pool. They tried to resuscitate her for a long time in the field and at the hospital. There was even a physician who lived nearby who assisted at the poolside.
It is tragic. She was a lovely little girl. Her parents will be starting a fund at our school for teaching the special needs children to swim. Her mother has expressed the desire to advocate for all children on the spectrum, as she has so much knowledge from her experiences advocating for Ashley.
It looks like my comment was not posted with the link to the story on Ashley. It is probably at bulk mail for moderation. You can find it at adventures in autism blogspot dot com
Sorry it took so long to de-spam your comments, Bonnie. The May 21st Forester has details, though specifics of how many autistic children drown is not clear. And I know that even though Charlie is a very good swimmer, he very much needs to be watched all the time.
Laurentius,
Wading through your over wrought prose I sense some underlying guilt. Sure accidents happen but you try to mitigate them, reduce the chance. Ever heard of seat belts? Oh yeah, and that supervision thing. The fact that the kid died proves she should have been watched. Using more words than someone else doesn’t make you right.
Larry says more than he says and I thank him for it.
But this is a tough story to read about.
I just read of another death:
Child struck, killed by train
GRAHAM — A 10-year-old autistic child was struck and killed by a train Saturday night as he walked on the tracks between Washington and Pomeroy streets, Graham police said Sunday.
Police said the child, who was described as “severely autistic,” wandered away from his home about 30 minutes prior to the incident. Police had already received a report that the child was missing and were searching the area when he was hit.
So sad. Too often it feels that we can never keep our children safe enough.
that was my sister. i miss her so much. we left her alone for a short time and it was so scary to see the ambulance come up. I wish she could be here. My family and I are helping other children like Carlee in need. I was one of the siblings who dialed 911 and im proud to be her sister.