Frum Toddler dies from drowning in bungalow colony

by Sandy Eller, VIN

Three days after falling into a swimming pool at an upstate bungalow colony, a Crown Heights toddler who had been clinging to life died this afternoon at Westchester Medical Center in Valahalla.

The accident took place at the Wellspring Bungalow Colony, located off Cold Spring Road in Monticello.  22 month old Zev Aryeh Glick managed to worm his way through the fence that surrounded the pool, together with his three year old brother during shacharis on Shabbos morning, where he tumbled into the water, according to reports in Hamodia.  Rescuers came running to the pool, alerted by the brother’s screams and Catskills Hatzolah was called to the scene.  The toddler, who was given the additional name Chaim as a zechus for his refuah, was transferred to Westchester Medical Center where he was placed on life support.

A Tehillim rally was held yesterday at the Jewish Childrens’ Museum in Crown Heights and news site COLlive.com estimated that 300 children gathered to daven for Zev Aryeh the son of Rabbi Zalman Glick, director of the museum, and Mrs. Nechama Glick.

Zev Aryeh’s death is the first drowning fatality in the Catskills this summer, and the third serious pool accident of the season.  Two drownings were also reported at Bear Mountain’s Hessian Lake in nearby Orange County.
In light of these water related incidents, a spokesperson for Catskills Hatzalah urged the public to exercise extreme vigilance and stressed the importance of exceptionally tight pool security.

“People shouldn’t take something like this lightly.  Parents have to watch their own kids and not rely on anyone else when it comes to their childrens’ safety.  They need to make sure that the pool area is secure, especially around doorways, where a little bit of give can allow a child to slip through and get into the pool area.”

Another important safety measure includes having a dedicated land line that is directly connected to Hatzolah.

“People rely on their cell phones or cordless phones, but they really aren’t the best choice,” explained the Hatzolah member.

“Cell phone service coverage isn’t as wide in the mountains as it is in the city and with a cordless phone you can’t be too far from the base.  In the drowning case this past weekend, the fact that there was no emergency phone and no one was carrying a phone because it was Shabbos, meant it took longer for help to arrive.”