Water rescuers were there

6-year-old and his mother were in danger of drowning

The boy panicked, (symbolic photo)

(Bild: APA/HERBERT P.OCZERET (Symbolbild))

Dramatic scenes at the outdoor pool in Laakirchen. A 6-year-old boy had jumped into the water and then panicked. His mother tried to save the boy, but because the pool was too deep, they were both in danger of drowning. Two members of the water rescue team rescued them both.

The outdoor pool in Laakirchen was the scene of dramatic events for the second time in just a few days. On Tuesday, the pool attendant was beaten to the point of hospitalization by a bather. On Thursday, a boy and a mother almost drowned.

In the late afternoon, the 6-year-old boy jumped into the water from a diving platform. The mother was swimming nearby, watching her son. Suddenly the child panicked and threatened to go under. He clung to his mother and pushed her under the water as well. As the pool is 1.90 meters deep at this point, the woman had no way of keeping herself and her child afloat.

Water rescue was on site
The woman called for help. Two members of the Austrian Water Rescue Service, who were helping with safety monitoring at the outdoor pool that day because the lifeguard was in hospital, recognized the danger. One rescuer jumped into the water and, together with a colleague, brought them to the edge of the pool.

Taken to hospital
As mother and son had swallowed a lot of water during these dramatic scenes, the emergency doctor was called immediately. The two were therefore taken to the Salzkammergut Klinikum Vöcklabruck by the ambulance service.