Plucked from pool

By Paul Dunlop
QUICK action by lifeguards saved a Pakenham girl from drowning on Sunday.
Fouryearold Emily Perrow had been swimming at Garfield pool with her family and friends when she got into trouble just before 6 pm.
The youngster had been splashing around at the shallow end of the pool like many other children seeking to escape the scorching summer heat.
Lifeguards spotted Emily floating face down in the water and immediately raised the alarm, diving into the pool to bring her to safety.
Emily’s grateful parents have praised the efforts of the people who saved their daughter’s life.
Mum Kerry watched in shock and dread as pool officials worked to resuscitate her eldest daughter who was unconscious, blue in the face and not breathing when she was pulled out of the water.
Mrs Perrow said the minute or so it took lifeguards to revive her daughter were among the longest and most terrible time of her life.
“It’s every mother’s nightmare,” she said.
“I had been with my friend Margaret at the toddler pool with our other daughter Rebecca, who’s two and a half, and we were keeping an eye on Emily who was playing with my friend’s daughter, who’s eight. We’d only just seen them when I heard the lifeguard’s whistle and realised somebody must be drowning.
“I got up to look for Emily thinking ‘Oh God, please don’t let it be my daughter’ and then they pulled her out of the water. I saw the bathers and just totally freaked.”
Fortunately, lifeguards were able to get her breathing again after just over 90 seconds. Police and paramedics were called and they continued to work to revive the young girl before she was taken by helicopter to the Royal Children’s Hospital.
Emily remained in hospital overnight for observation then returned home, more or less back to her usual bright and bubbly self, with her relieved parents on Monday afternoon.
Mrs Perrow and husband Richard said they could not express enough gratitude to the lifeguards.
“They saved her life,” Mrs Perrow said. “All praise to the staff at the Garfield pool and the ambulance staff, we cannot ever thank them enough, they were just fantastic,” she said.
“That minute or so after the lifeguard got Emily out of the pool, all I could think of was how much I didn’t want to lose her, how precious she was.”
Mr and Mrs Perrow said they did not plan to let the incident stop Emily from getting back into the water.
“She just loves it, loves going to the pool, but there’s no way I’ll be taking my eyes off her,” Mrs Perrow said.
Cardinia Shire Council recreational facilities officer Graeme Stephenson praised Garfield pool staff for the way they handled the situation saying they acted in precisely the right way.
“You hope these things never happen but if they do you need to be prepared and the lifeguards did exactly what they are trained to do,” he said.
Mr Stephenson visited the Perrow family yesterday to check on Emily’s progress. He said it was “fantastic” to see the fouryearold happy, healthy . . . and home.