Boise lifeguards, nurse save young boy from drowning at city pool. ‘They’re heroes’
A group of Boise lifeguards and a nearby nurse saved the life of a young boy Saturday after the child was unresponsive when he was pulled out of a city pool.
At around 4:45 p.m. Saturday, a lifeguard at the Ivywild Pool noticed a 4-year-old boy floating in the water and not moving, and jumped in the water to get him, according to City of Boise Parks and Recreation Director Doug Holloway.
Lifeguards pulled the child from the pool. The boy was unresponsive and not breathing, and they began performing CPR. Multiple lifeguards — as well as a supervisor and a nurse from Pocatello who was visiting the pool — were able to revive the boy, Holloway said.
Brandy Morrison, a Boise resident, was at the pool with her 3-year-old child when she witnessed the ordeal just a few feet away. She said she saw the boy being pulled from the water and saw lifeguards quickly begin doing chest compressions. She later realized that the boy’s mother was near her, and said she began trying to comfort her and the boy’s young sister.
She said that when the boy woke up, he screamed, presumably out of shock. But the noise was a welcome relief, Morrison said.
“It was the best kid scream I’ve ever heard,” Morrison said.
The boy was awake and breathing when paramedics arrived, and he was taken to a nearby hospital. Holloway said the boy was under observation at the hospital and released a few hours later.
Holloway said the four lifeguards, all city employees, received CPR training as part of their job training. He commended all of those involved, in particular three young lifeguards — all high school or college students — for their bravery and quick thinking.
Those involved in the rescue are set to be honored by Boise Mayor Lauren McLean during a City Council work session on Tuesday afternoon, according to Holloway.
As the parent of a young child herself, Morrison said the ordeal was upsetting to witness, seeing as it takes only a moment for something like that to happen to a young child.
She said she’s thankful for those who acted quickly to save the boy, and she commended the young lifeguards who kept their nerve and did what they were trained to do.
“They’re heroes in my book,” Morrison said.
This story was originally published August 16, 2021 at 3:20 PM.
