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Hernando Today

Drowned Child's Identity Released

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By KYLE MARTIN

Hernando Today

Published: May 27, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - New details, including a name, were released Tuesday by the Hernando County Sheriff's Office about a 1-year-old boy who drowned Monday in his family's pool.
The child's name is Bisher Hiba and he was one day shy of turning 13 months old. He lived at 4571 Golf Club Lane in the Silverthorn subdivision, off Barclay Avenue.
Around 11 a.m., his parents were in another part of the house while his siblings were charged with watching their younger brother, according to a press release.
The older children were watching a movie and working on homework while the victim slipped through an open glass door and past the plastic barricade blocking the entryway.
The children, ages 14, 12 and 10, found their brother floating in the pool and yelled for their parents. Bisher's father, Rodwan Hiba, began cardiopulmonary resuscitation until paramedics arrived.
There is no indication that the drowning is anything other than an accident, the sheriff's office said.
The family declined by phone to be interviewed on Tuesday. Rodwan Hiba is a gastroenterologist with a practice in Brooksville.

Pool Safety Tips from The American Academy of Pediatrics

Never leave your children alone in or near the pool, even for a moment. An adult who knows CPR should actively supervise children at all times.
Practice touch supervision with children younger than 5 years. This means that the adult is within an arm's length of the child at all times.
You must put up a fence to separate your house from the pool. Most young children who drown in pools wander out of the house and fall into the pool. Install a fence at least 4 feet high around all 4 sides of the pool. This fence will completely separate the pool from the house and play area of the yard. Use gates that self-close and self-latch, with latches higher than your children's reach.
Keep rescue equipment (such as a shepherd's hook or life preserver) and a telephone by the pool.
Do not use air-filled "swimming aids" as a substitute for approved life vests.
Remove all toys from the pool after use so children aren't tempted to reach for them.
After the children are done swimming, secure the pool so they can't get back into it.
A power safety cover that meets the standards of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) may add to the protection of your children but should not be used in place of the fence between your house and the pool. Even fencing around your pool and using a power safety cover will not prevent all drownings.

Reporter Kyle Martin can be reached at 352-544-5271 or kmartin@hernandotoday.com

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