8-year-old girl found unresponsive in Gig Harbor YMCA pool

An 8-year-old girl was found unresponsive in a swimming pool Saturday afternoon at Gig Harbor’s Tom Taylor Family YMCA, multiple sources confirmed.

The girl was found submerged in the shallow end of the children’s section of a pool at about 2 p.m., YMCA staff told Gig Harbor Fire. The lifeguards on duty responded and called 911. Staff and bystanders were performing CPR when paramedics arrived and took over.

The child was transported to Tacoma’s Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. The girl’s condition was unclear Sunday afternoon. Michelle LaRue, spokeswoman for YMCA of Pierce and Kitsap Counties, said the organization had not yet received an update from the family. The fire department also did not have an update on the girl’s condition.

The incident occurred as the facility was preparing for a swim meet. Three life guards were on duty. A fourth lifeguard was on break, but LaRue said the staff still met its target of one lifeguard per 20 swimmers. There were nine adults and 11 children in the pools at the time of the incident.

“As you can imagine, there are a lot of prayers from our staff, members and volunteers,” LaRue said.

The aquatic center was closed Saturday as the facility and authorities conducted an investigation. The pool remain closed Sunday but was scheduled to reopen Monday at 4:45 a.m. The rest of the facility did not close Saturday and was open Sunday morning.

Tom Taylor Family YMCA staff posted a message Saturday afternoon on its Facebook page: “YMCA staff and members are deeply saddened by a child who went unresponsive in our pool, and offer our heartfelt prayers to the family. The aquatics center is closed and we are working with police to investigate. We will provide an update on the girl’s condition when we receive more information.”

This story was originally published March 18, 2018 at 10:16 AM with the headline "8-year-old girl found unresponsive in Gig Harbor YMCA pool."