A 5-year-old child was found at the bottom of a swimming pool in Repentigny, a suburb of Montreal, on Sunday afternoon, after spending about 20 minutes under water.
Posted at 6:45 p.m.
Rushed to Sainte-Justine hospital, there are fears for his life, especially since he no longer showed vital signs when he was taken care of by paramedics.
The officers of the Service de police de la Ville de Repentigny (SPVR) received an emergency call around 3:47 p.m. on Sunday.
Two neighbors were searching the bottom of a pool with black and muddy water, visibly abandoned, when they arrived in the courtyard of a residence on boulevard Iberville, in Repentigny.
The child, a 5-year-old boy, had been located in the deep part of the basin, but a policeman had to dive to get him out since the neighbors were unable to do so.
His parents, who owned the unmaintained swimming pool, were there at the time of the tragedy and were receiving visitors. Several adults and children were at the scene, according to SPVR spokesman Bruno Marier.
Photo Philippe Boivin, the press
The officers of the Service de police de la Ville de Repentigny (SPVR) received an emergency call around 3:47 p.m. on Sunday.
An investigation has been opened by the SPVR to try to clarify the circumstances of the event.
This is the third tragedy of its kind to occur in less than two days in Quebec.
A 4-year-old toddler drowned on Saturday afternoon in a residential swimming pool in Saint-Lambert, on the South Shore of Montreal.
Earlier in the day, this time in the Quebec suburb of Saint-Nicolas, another child reportedly lost his flotation device while bathing, TVA Nouvelles reported. Luckily, he was able to be rescued in time.