‘Full health and safety investigation’ taking place after death of four-year-old at Waterworld in Staffordshire
The circumstances surrounding the death of a four-year-old girl at a water park in Stoke-on-Trent are being investigated, the city council has said.
The girl was treated at the scene following an incident in a swimming pool at Waterworld in Hanley on Monday (August 4), but later died in hospital, Staffordshire Police said.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Stoke-on-Trent City Council said: “The council’s environmental health team are working with the police and the privately-run venue to undertake a full health and safety investigation.”
Steve Watkins, the Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent, paid tribute to the child’s family, saying: “We were all devastated to hear of the death of a four-year-old girl at Waterworld.
“This is a terrible tragedy and our thoughts are with her family and loved ones.”
In a statement posted on its Facebook page on Monday, Waterworld said the girl was “found unconscious and treated on poolside” in the lagoon area of the park at around 4.15pm by lifeguard and management teams, who provided CPR and called the emergency services.
It added: “All other visitors were asked to quietly leave the pool out of respect for the rescue operation underway, and we would like to thank them for their support and collaboration.
“It is with great sadness that we learned of this young girl’s passing later this evening. All our thoughts are with her family and loved ones during these extremely difficult times.
“The authorities were immediately alerted and Waterworld is working closely and openly with them to precisely understand the circumstances of this tragic accident.”
Anyone with information or who saw what happened is asked to call 101 quoting incident number 460 of August 4.
