2-Year-Old Girl Drowns While Unattended in Bathtub

A 2-year-old girl who suffered from a growth disease drowned in 12 inches of bath water Monday night when her father left her unattended for a few moments, sheriff’s officials said Tuesday.

The drowning occurred about 8:30 p.m., when Mahsa Amini’s father put her in the bathtub at the family’s home in the 21000 block of Brentwood and went downstairs for a short time to attend to his other daughter, a 3-year-old, authorities said.

“When he came upstairs, he found the baby floating face down, motionless,” said Lt. Dan Martini.

The father, Mohsen Amini, drove the child to a nearby fire station on Olympiad Road, where firefighters summoned paramedics.

Orange County Fire Authority spokeswoman Emmy Day said Amini told firefighters when he walked into the station that “my child can’t talk.” Firefighters and paramedics tried unsuccessfully to revive the girl, who had turned blue and was in full cardiac arrest, Day said.

“Certainly, in all appearances it looks to be an accident. We just need to make sure,” Martini said.

Day said the tragedy should be a warning to parents that drowning is the No. 1 cause of death of children under 5 in the United States. She also said parents should remember to dial 911 in an emergency rather than try to drive for help.

“Most people think drowning happens in swimming pools, but obviously it can happen in a bathtub [and] there are even cases of drowning in a bucket,” Day said.

Martini said the girl suffered from a growth disease that causes tumors in the skin and uneven growth of the body. The disease is called neurofibromatosis, or Von Recklinghausen disease.

An autopsy revealed that the initial cause of death is drowning by clear water, Martini said. However, sheriff’s officials are awaiting the results of toxicology tests to determine whether complications from the toddler’s disease, or any other factor, contributed to her death. Martini said there were no signs of trauma on the girl’s body.

“We have not exhausted the investigation. We are still looking into the circumstances,” Martini said.

Amini, 40, is a home security systems salesman. His wife, Mehri Amini, 28, was not home at the time, Martini said.

Friends who gathered at the Amini home Tuesday night said the couple was “very upset” and did not want to comment on what had happened. One man, who declined to give his name, said the parents were still trying to keep the news of the girl’s death from her sister.

Neighbors said they were shocked by the drowning. Robert John, who has known the Aminis for the past two years, said he often saw them strolling through the neighborhood with their two children.

John’s wife, Kristen, said she and her husband and 8-month-old daughter left the neighborhood for several hours after hearing the news from another neighbor.

“I just had to get away from here--it was so upsetting,” Kristen John said. “I just held my baby and cried. I can’t imagine what they are going through.”