Arizona Toddler Declared Dead After Backyard Pool Drowning Found Breathing in Hospital Morgue

An 18-month-old toddler in Gilbert, a Phoenix suburb, was declared dead after being pulled unresponsive from a backyard pool during a Super Bowl gathering, but was found breathing hours later in the hospital’s “cold room.”

“Toddler declared dead in drowning incident found alive in hospital morgue: Police report Several people reported that the boy seemed to be gasping for air, police said”

ABC News

First responders were dispatched to the home at about 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 8 in response to a reported drowning, and the attending physician pronounced the boy dead about an hour later.

ABC News

Police records say two Gilbert officers saw possible signs of life multiple times before the child was taken to Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, where the doctor said, “If there's no objections, I'd like to call time of death.”

About five hours later, police were notified the child was indeed breathing, and the boy was flown to another hospital where he ultimately survived and has been released.

The police report described the officers questioning the declaration after they told a physician, Dr Aryan Toosi, that they had seen signs of life, and Toosi responded, “please do your thing and let me do my thing.”

CBS News reported that Dr. Aryan Toosi told an officer, “Please do your thing and let me do my thing,” and that the child was still taken to the hospital's “cold room” after being treated by staff.

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Mercy Gilbert Medical Center said it conducted “a thorough review of all aspects of the care provided to learn what happened and to make meaningful changes to strengthen our care,” calling it “a heartbreaking situation.”

The Maricopa County Attorney's Office said it was reviewing the case and declined further comment Monday, while Gilbert police said they are recommending negligence charges against the parents.

Investigators said there was a strong odor of marijuana at the home and open doors that could have allowed unsupervised access to the pool, and Gilbert police records described the incident beginning around 5:30 p.m. local time on Feb. 8.

“- Published A US toddler who was found unresponsive in an Arizona pool and declared dead was later discovered to be alive in the hospital's "cold room", a newly released police report shows”

BBC

ABC News reported that the 157-page police report recommends the toddler's parents be charged with child abuse for alleged negligence, and it alleges the parents did not properly secure the garage doors after smoking marijuana in the garage that day.

Scott Holden, an attorney for Toosi, told the AP he wouldn’t make a full statement “other than to assure you that there is much more to this case, both factually and medically, than has been reported thus far.”

The boy’s family created a GoFundMe page that identified the toddler as Vincent Lorenzo Fiordilino and said he would need extensive therapy, while the hospital said it could not provide further details “out of respect for the patient's privacy.”