SAN DIEGO (WHDH) — An afternoon at the pool ended in the stressful rescue of a 3-year-old boy, who managed to get stuck in a pool filter at an apartment complex in San Diego on Monday.
Firefighters worked for more than an hour to free the toddler while trying to calm him down.
San Diego Fire and Rescue Capt. Bill Waugaman called the situation “very stressful.”
“When a little boy starts crying we kinda work a little harder and work a little faster to make sure he’s OK,” he added.
As the sun began to set, the toddler became more comfortable and was seen laughing with his dad and playing in the nearby water.
“It kinda brings the whole incident down, a little slower, and it makes us a lot more confident that he’s OK. We can take our time. He’s not in any distress,” Waugaman said.
Firefighters eventually used an impact drill to remove more of the cement.
“We were able to work one leg at a time, get him free and then he just came out,” Waugaman recalled.
The 3-year-old was scared but physically OK.
Waugaman is urging parents to “keep an eye on your kids. Little kids like to get into everything, I know I did.”
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