Mum’s warning after losing 4yo daughter in backyard tragedy
An Aussie mum is battling the tragic flaw in Australia’s pool safety system, with new statistics proving just how big of a problem it is.
Last summer, Rhiannon Egan-lee experienced every mother’s worst nightmare, losing her four-year-old daughter, Ivy, after she gained access to a neighbour’s pool.
“Ivy, in the space of less than four minutes, removed a fence paling and went straight through to the neighbour’s yard poolside, took her dress off, and jumped in the water,” she told news.com.au.
“I pulled her out after a few minutes, the damage was too much. It’s so quick, and it is irreversible. There’s nothing you can do to change it.”
Currently in Victoria, all pool and spa safety barriers must be inspected every four years by a registered building surveyor or inspector.
But in the devastated mother’s eyes, it’s nowhere near thorough enough, having consistently petitioned for change over the last 12 months – and continuing to do so.
“This fence in question was passed in February of 2024 with a compliance certificate, as the property was sold,” she said.
“There’s no way it was compliant. If a four-year-old girl can pull off a paling … there’s no way.
“We’re talking about our children’s lives – you can’t just hand out certificates like they’re lollies.”
Ms Egan-lee’s hope is that all private pools be surrounded by four-sided isolating fencing, and that the use of boundary fencing as a pool barrier be deemed illegal – with stricter penalties for those found to have non-compliant pool fences.
New statistics, compiled in the latest MagnaLatch Pool Safety Report, have show that 70 per cent of pool owners haven’t checked their pool gate in the past six months or more.
Meanwhile, 41 per cent admitted they simply don’t think about it, as 21 per cent said they are unsure what to look for. Almost a quarter claimed to not have the time to complete the necessary checks.
For Ms Egan-lee, this is extremely concerning.
“It’s sickening. It actually makes me feel sick,” she said.
Emma Lawrence, the managing director of Kids Alive, said that this is exactly why it’s so important to continue advocacy and education around pool safety – despite how prevalent the messaging may feel.
“I know that it’s something that we talk about all the time, but it’s something that has to be spoken about all the time,” she told news.com.au.
“New babies are being born every day, and that means that there’s new families who are at risk of losing their little one to drowning.”
While there are many pool rules that we’re familiar with, Ms Lawrence said that pool gates seem to fly under the radar.
“Backyard swimming pools are the leading location for children under five to drown. We know that for every child that drowns, we have up to eight others who will present to emergency departments who have suffered a non-fatal drowning, and many of those children go on to live with a disability as a result of that,” she said.
“Drowning prevention is essential, and pool fences and pool gates save lives. We know that. And, we know that it is one of the most effective ways to prevent children from accidentally falling into water.”
She added that overlooking things like the faulty pool gate, to propping a gate open and also having climbable objects around the pool zone might seem like nothing, but “are actually really dangerous behaviours”.
And, this is particularly important as we go into summer, as with entertaining often comes shirked responsibility.
“We want to have fun, we want to build those memories, but accidents just happen so quickly, and when we’re having parties and barbecues and people over, what happens is people assume that someone else is watching the kids, and there’s that level of confusion that happens, and you think ‘Oh no, I thought my husband was watching’, or ‘I thought Aunty Jane was watching the kids’,” she said.
“You have to, as adults, have that conversation about who is keeping the eyes on the kids, who’s supervising them, have the designated adult in charge, and do simple things to enable you to keep your backyard pool safe.”
Ms Egan-lee agreed with the sentiment, urging pool owners to check their pool fences before it’s too late.
“Go out there, and check all the fencing. All the gate latches, all the hinges, make sure all the panels of your fence are strong and structurally sound, and no one can pull them apart,” she said.
Originally published as Mum’s warning after losing 4yo daughter in backyard tragedy
