Dad praises ‘heroes’ who saved son

The family of a boy found unconscious at the bottom of a pool at the Mt Albert Aquatic Centre wants to meet and thank the member of the public who pulled him from the water and the doctor who resuscitated him.

The father of the preschooler described the actions of Auckland doctor Joe Hancock and the man who pulled the little boy from the water as “heroic”.

He wanted to speak to both men and thank them personally for the role they played in saving his son’s life.

The father contacted the Herald after an article revealed safety concerns at the pool facility.

He said he had been told it was lifeguards who pulled his son from the water and resuscitated him.

“We never knew of the hero person who found him under the water and the hero doctor. Without the intervention of the doctor it would’ve been a different outcome.”

Hancock stepped in when he saw a lifeguard performing chest compressions, despite food in the boy’s mouth obstructing his breathing.

A witness supported this, saying she was relieved the doctor “took over” because “it seemed the lifeguards had no idea what they were doing”.

Another witness revealed it was a “man wearing speedos” and not a lifeguard who pulled the unconscious boy from the water.

The boy’s father said the past week had been “extremely difficult” but their son was recovering well and was now home with them.

His wife had taken their son to the pools and was putting a bag in a locker when the boy walked over to the pool and she lost sight of him.

Belgravia Leisure, which runs the facility on behalf of Auckland Council, said there would be a “thorough review of the sequence of events to better understand the incident and the venue will work through the consideration of implementing any safety recommendations”.