Clark County pool owner ‘heartbroken’ over 3-year-old boy’s drowning

A 3-year-old boy drowned on Labor Day in a pool at a home in Moorefield Twp.

The boy has been identified as Silas Malone, according to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office. The child was found in an above-ground pool on Mumper Road and had been at a family gathering across the road at a home on Floyd Drive, Clark County Sheriff’s Lt. Christopher Clark said.

County dispatchers received emergency calls a little after 5 p.m. Monday.

“We’re not sure how he got in,” Clark said. “There is a deck attached to the pool. We can only assume he went up the deck, but we’re not 100 percent sure at this point.”

Authorities said Malone was flown by a medical helicopter to Dayton Children’s Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

The family of the child couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday.

The owner of the pool, Donald Comer, said he was heartbroken over the child’s death.

“I’m just sad that the boy’s life was lost and there wasn’t more that we could do,” he said. “I am very sorry for the family.”

Comer said the pool is up to code and has a gate that locks.

The sheriff’s office doesn’t suspect the pool owner violated any criminal laws, Clark said.

“We do not find that the owners of the pool are in violation of any Ohio Revised Code Section,” Clark said.

The Clark County Community Development Department couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday to verify if the pool met all local codes.

Comer and another man who also lives at the Mumper Road home both called 9-1-1. The other male caller, who’s name wasn’t available Tuesday afternoon, says adults at the scene were able to get the child out of the pool but the boy needed immediate medical attention.

“There was a baby that fell in my pool,” the caller says. “We need an ambulance.”

It’s important for pool owners to take steps to ensure it’s safe, Clark County Combined Health District’s Director of Environmental Health Larry Shaffer said.

“(They) should have a fence around the pool with a locked gate when there are no adults present,” Shaffer said. “People should also always monitor their children when they are swimming.

“We do recommend that people teach children to swim at a young age,” Shaffer said. “Always wear flotation devices until the child is an excellent swimmer.”

About the Author