Backyard pools can be a wonderful addition to a home, but they can also be dangerous, particularly for children. Pool safety is so important for families. If kids want to swim, then an adult must be there to supervise and minimize drowning risk. No exceptions. And if you own a pool, it’s important to make sure it is secure when not in use. Still, even the most diligent pool owners can have accidents.
Tragically, hundreds of children drown in pools each year and thousands more visit emergency rooms across the country from water-related injuries. Medical professionals in Arizona recently pronounced a child dead from drowning, only to have the child miraculously wake up hours later.
Police from the Gilbert Police Department responded to a call on February 8, 2026, which happened to be Super Bowl Sunday. When they arrived at the home around 5:30 p.m., emergency responders began life-saving measures on an unidentified child who had drowned in the backyard pool, KPHO reported. They rushed the child to an area hospital, where staff declared the child dead around 6:30 p.m.
According to the news outlet, Gilbert police officers received word around 11:30 p.m. that shocked them. The child reportedly began showing signs of life. Staff air-lifted the child to a second hospital for treatment. KPHO reported doctors expected the child to survive, but the youngster’s current condition remains unclear.
The story sounded truly unbelievable to one Arizona emergency room physician. Dr. Frank LoVecchio, who has worked in the emergency room for years but did not treat the child, told KPHO he’s never heard anything like this story. “I guess anything’s possible, but it doesn’t sound probable,” LoVecchio said.
He explained that being in a morgue for five hours and suddenly coming back to life seemed like a stretch.
“Somewhat hard to believe as a physician,” he said. “It’s hard to believe that they were pronounced dead and then sent to the morgue, and hours later they awoke. Maybe — never say never in medicine, never say never and never say always, right.”
He said sometimes, if a person is very cold, the pulse could be undetected and mimic death. But even just a few minutes without oxygen could cause permanent brain damage. Without knowing the full details, he said, it’s hard to speculate.
“If you’re overly sensitive, it’s when you’re pronouncing a child dead. You want to be absolutely sure — make sure the temperature was adequate, that there is no heartbeat, no movement, no blood pressure,” LoVecchio told KPHO. “So, I think something’s missing from the story.”
But the doctor did admit that if the child survived this, that would be a “miracle.”
This is a wild story. For the sake of every family member, we hope the child makes a full recovery.
