Citizen Staff Writer
DAVID L. TEIBEL
dteibel@tucsoncitizen.com
A 2-year-old girl is dead after she wandered from her home and fell into the backyard hot tub while family members napped following an Easter dinner, a sheriff’s spokeswoman said.
The child’s name was not immediately available, said Deputy Dawn Barkman.
Someone from the home found the child shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday and called authorities, Barkman said.
The child was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead.
It appears to be an accidental drowning, Barkman said, adding detectives were sent to the home, which is standard procedure in such case.
The child drowned at her home on South Heifner Place, near South Kinney and West Bopp Roads, Barkman said.
She said family members had gathered at the home for dinner and took naps after eating.
Those in the home thought the child also was napping, but she apparently woke up and wandered outside, Barkman said.
So far this year, Tucson Fire Capt. Tricia Tracy said, there have been one near drowning and two drownings in the metro area of children under the ages of 11, including the child who drowned Sunday.
By this time last year, there were one child near drowning and one drowning, said Tracy, a Tucson Fire spokeswoman who tracks metro area child drownings and near drownings.