26 July 2010

Coroner Investigating Boy's Pool Death

Cambridge Ontario - The head of the region's ambulance service says the death of a toddler last weekend is an undisputable tragedy, but probably has nothing to do with an eight-minute delay caused by a train blocking the boy's route to the hospital.
 
The two-year-old boy was rescued from a backyard pool 3 Jul 2010, and was revived by paramedics before he was loaded into an ambulance outside his Concession Road home.
 
Normally only three minutes from Cambridge Memorial Hospital, the drive took much longer thanks to a Canadian Pacific train that was shunting back and forth at the crossing near Coronation Boulevard.
 
The boy eventually made it to the hospital, where he was transferred to the McMaster Children's Hospital in critical condition. He never regained consciousness, and died over the weekend.
 
The coroner's office and detectives from the Waterloo Regional Police service are investigating the boy's death, as part of a mandatory probe required any time a child under five dies suddenly and unexpectedly. An autopsy was to be performed Monday and police hope that will help them determine the boy's cause of death.
 
But John Prno, director of Waterloo region's ambulance service, doubts they'll find the ambulance's delay had an impact on his survival.
 
"The death is a tragedy, there's no doubt about that, and we feel for the family" Prno said. "But I personally don't believe (the delay) made any difference."
 
As he lay in the back of an ambulance waiting for the train to pass, the boy's heart was beating again and he was breathing with the help of a machine that works like an inflatable balloon. Paramedics had him on the usual intravenous drugs for someone in that condition, and he was considered stable.
 
"It certainly delayed the time it took to get him to hospital, but whether it made any difference in his survival or not, I doubt. But that's up to the coroner to decide," Prno said.
 
His only worry was the coroner's investigation may slow down plans to address the long-standing issue of trains delaying emergency vehicles travelling across Cambridge. But at least the tragedy may force rail and municipal officials to finally fix the problem, he said.
 
"It has brought this issue to the forefront again, and I think everybody is concerned about it enough to resolve it this time," Prno said. "If there's one good thing to come out of this, it's that there could be resolution so this never happens again."
 
Mike LoVecchio, a spokesperson for Canadian Pacific Railway, said the company feels for the family who lost their child, and still plans to meet with regional officials in mid-August to discuss the issue of trains causing roadway delays.
 
"Our sympathy goes out to the friends and family of this little boy. It's a horrible tragedy for them to lose their son," he said. "As for the coroner's investigation, we will co-operate fully."
 
Greg Mercer.