Boy partially disembowelled in accident

as posted here


ALEISHA PREEDY
December 16, 2009 - 4:49PM
AAP

A four-year-old West Australian boy is recovering after being partially disembowelled when he sat on a swimming pool skimmer box.

The boy was in the pool at his home in Gosnells, in Perth's southeast, when the accident happened on December 5, the WA Department of Consumer Protection division says.

He sat on the skimmer box, a filtering device on the edge of the pool which removes leaves and dirt from the water, and the suction of the pool's filter pump damaged a portion of his small and large intestine.

He spent a week receiving treatment at Perth's Princess Margaret Hospital and is now recovering at home, but will require the use of a colostomy bag for several months while his injuries heal.

The consumer protection department issued a warning about the danger of pool equipment on Wednesday, following an inquiry into the incident.

Consumer Protection Commissioner Anne Driscoll warned owners of older-style swimming pools, installed prior to 1988, to check skimmer boxes cannot be accessed by children.

"In older-style pools these skimmer boxes look like a seat or potty that a child can easily sit in unless there is a physical barrier or the lid is permanently secured down," Ms Driscoll said.

"If children sit in a skimmer box it can cause horrific injuries and even death.

"It's important that skimmer boxes have a safety skirt or lid installed which is a vertical barrier preventing children from sitting on the box and that the lid is securely fixed and can only be removed with tools and not by hand."

as posted here