Father Of Boy Electrocuted In Pool Touts Checking For Wiring Safety Issues

HIALEAH (CBSMiami) - After three children were nearly electrocuted in a swimming, pool, there is a renewed effort to urge parents to check their swimming pool's electrical system.

Three children were swimming in the pool Sunday of their Hialeah apartment complex when they were jolted by electricity.

Witnesses said it happened when they touched the metal pool handle bar.

The two girls and one boy were rushed to the hospital, and are expected to be okay.

For one North Miami dad, the Hialeah pool incident was like pouring salt on fresh wounds.

Chris Sloan's son, Calder, died just two weeks ago. The seven-year-old boy was electrocuted in the family pool—a faulty pool cable was the cause. In the wake of the tragedy, Sloan is urging other parents to have their pools checked out by an electrician.

"Maybe this is why this happened, is to save other lives, but it didn't save our sons life," said Sloan.

Among the dads taking sloan's advice is the spokesman for miade-dade fire and rescue, lt. Arnold piedrahita.

"My wife and I felt compelled to have our pool checked," said Piedrahita. "If someone were to ask me, 'is your pool 100-percent safe,' I couldn't with all certainty tell them yes."

With a one-year-old son and a baby on the way, Piedrahita had his pool inspected. The electrician found a damaged cable attached to the pool light.

"This is what the cable looked like," said Piedrahita. "This is from years of exposure to high chlorine levels. It just eats away at the plastic."

The damaged pool light cable probably didn't have enough voltage to shock anyone, but now he has the peace of mind his son will be safe the next time he swims.

Homeowners should look for possible problems with their wiring – whether it's driveway lights or pool lights or interior wiring; light fixtures that show signs of rust or corrosion, water inside the pool light fixture, lights that flicker or any odd sounds - buzzing or popping - from switches or fixtures.

Click here for more information on swimming pool and other wiring safety from the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

For more information on pool and electrical safety, read CBS4's Gary Nelson's story, "Pool Electrocution Highlights Wiring Safety Issues."