<font color="#FF0000">UPDATED:</font> 2-year-old drowns in swimming pool

Local News

June 9, 2009

By Jeff Waters, Democrat Reporter

A two-year-old Suwannee County girl died at Shands UF Monday morning after falling into a pool the previous night, according to Suwannee County sheriff's reports.

Vivian Jean Marie Hartman was found floating in an above-ground pool at an O'Brien home that she was visiting with her parents and other family members.

Reports state several adults were on the front porch of the home watching Hartman and two other children playing on the ground next to the porch. Several of the adults went inside the residence to prepare a cake, while two other adults stayed outside. Reports state the two adults went into a barn located next to the residence to get feed for horses when they heard a scream and ran outside.

One of the adults interviewed by deputies said she saw the other adults running toward the pool where Vivian was found floating in the water.

CPR was performed on the toddler until emergency workers arrived around 7:42 p.m. Emergency workers continued to performed CPR in an ambulance while waiting on lifeflight. Hartman was airlifted to Shands UF where she remained in critical condition until she was pronounced dead at 8:43 Monday morning.

"It's a terrible thing," said Chief Deputy Ron Colvin of the Suwannee County Sheriff's Office. "I can't begin to imagine what the family is going through after this tragic accident."