Two Toddlers Nearly Drown in Incidents Minutes Apart

Two toddlers nearly drowned Saturday in unrelated incidents that occurred within minutes of each other, underscoring the need for adult supervision when children are around water, officials said.

Fourteen-month-old James Alexander Futch was with his family at a backyard barbecue in the 11500 block of Weatherby Road in Rossmoor about 6:15 p.m., Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Scott Brown said.

Half a dozen adults were temporarily distracted and about a minute later turned to find the child floating face-down in the pool, Brown said.

One of the adults administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and paramedics took James to Los Alamitos Medical Center, where he is expected to recover, Brown said.

About half an hour later, 7-month-old John Kelleher maneuvered his walker through a gap in the 3-foot fence around his family’s pool in the 27700 block of West Ridge Lane in Laguna Hills, Brown said.

The child fell in, but was rescued by his father, who performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The child was taken to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center, where he was listed in critical but stable condition. Orange County has had eight child drownings so far this year, with the latest being a toddler in Anaheim who drowned in a water-filled cooler Wednesday.

Last year, Orange County led the nation with 15 child drownings and 20 near-drownings.