Sunday

Noah's Ark Waterpark - Wisconsin Dells, WI

BADNANNYSIGHTING-1
Not the place for bad parent sightings, but what my friend and I witnessed was rather scary. Everything happened so fast, and we (being my friend and I who witnessed this) aren't sure if it was a nanny or parent involved. Either way, what happened, in our opinion was in poor judgement, because it compromised a child's safety.

Place: Noah's Ark Waterpark, Wisconsin Dells, WI, in the pool area.
Date: Saturday 7/7/2012, between 530-600p.

If you haven't been here before, it is a blast! Tons of water slides, and this particular area has a pool with two separate sections: 3'6 feet and 11' feet. The 11' foot sections have slides, a jumping step, and hang gliders that drop you into the water. Approximately six lifeguards are present. As I stated before, my friend and Iwitnessed something scary and questionable based on one decision. While my friend and I were in the pool, we were watching the three girls we brought with us, (9, 9 and 6 years) so we were busy enough! The six year old wanted to go on the hang gliders, and we were concerned about her ability to swim in deep water without floaties, so we didn't take the risk. The 6 year old was splashing and swimming next to us, while her sister (one of the nine year olds) and their friend (the other nine year old) were in line for the gliders, when we saw a little boy, 4-5 years old, on the gliders. The glider stops at a point on the cable and it drops the person into 11' feet of water. The little boy dropped into the water, coming up after shortly thereafter. The lifeguards noticed this and sprang into action. It was evident that the child had previous swimming lessons, yet struggled with water this deep. The lifeguards were in position to help him, ready to step in if needed, watching the child as he made his way over to the ladder, where his adult was waiting. Again, while this was clearly not a sighting, it was disturbing, because it takes a split second for something to happen. We didn't let the 6 year old go in for safety concerns; why did this parent allow their child, who was clearly not ready to swim in deep water, allow him to be on the gliders, knowing something could happen?

43 comments:

world's best nanny said...

Swimming skills do not change with the depth of the water.

Bethany said...

I wonder how he was allowed on the ride in the first place? Doesn't sound like something an average sized 4-5 year old would be allowed on at most parks.

I also wonder why the adult wasn't in the water with the child.

princess said...

Its one thing for you not to feel ok with it for you children but each parent makes their own choice. Or nanny. If its a nanny maybe the parents said it was ok. Maybe the kid has done it tons of times. I don't think you know enough about the situation to really say its not ok. I cant swim so I'm extra cautious with water activities but that's me. Based in the info given, I don't really feel anything disturbing going on.

blurp said...

This doesn't sound like a bad siting. Maybe this kid has been going there for years and this hanging glider thing has been his goal and that day was The Day he'd worked up the courage to do it. Clearly he struggled and succeeded. Clearly his caretaker (parent or otherwise) was watching. Clearly he tried something scary in a body of water with lots of attentive lifeguards.

I have a small 9 year old, tiny for her age, who looks about 6-7. People are sometimes shocked that I send her into certain stores by herself, let her cross the street on her own, but they don't know that we've talked about this multiple times beforehand, that I've shadowed her doing it on her own, that we've talked out what to do in any possible situation that may come up, and that I'm timing how long it should take before I go after her.

It's nice that you were keeping an eye on the boy - that's what being the village is all about - but he conquered something, so be happy for him.

a mom said...

My 5yo dd would do something just like this.....she isn't a strong swimmer but can swim, float on back etc. I wouldn't take my eyes off of her for a second in water over her head, but she LOVES to swim in deeper water where she can't touch...loves jumping in to the pool where she can't touch. How else do you learn? There is a 1st time for everything. My oldest dc was like this too. My middle dc is a more cautious kid and wouldn't jump into water over his head til his front crawl was 100% perfect

Just My Two Cents Just Now said...

Wow...if this was dangerous, I wonder why this little boy was allowed to use the gliders.

Just My Two Cents Just Now said...

If he would've drowned, wouldn't someone be held liable?

I think it is the pool's responsibility to make sure that height restrictions are being enforced at ALL times.

If there is no height restriction, then I think it would be safe providing there is a parent or other responsible adult close by. One should not rely solely on the lifeguards.

Anyway, I am glad this story has such a happy ending and that the boy was okay.

☺ ☺

Blythe said...

I can't help thinking of "my" 9 year old, who has always kind of looked like he's drowning whenever he's swimming. As we put it, "He's very good at staying alive, but very bad at looking good while he's doing it!" He is a safe swimmer, though far from the most graceful. Maybe you were witnessing something like that? I guess we'll never know...

Logical Skeptic said...

Princess, you need to learn to swim ASAP.

Student Nanny said...

I think the telling thing here is that his caretaker was right near by waiting for him, presumably also ready to spring into action if need be. Had she been absent, then I'd be concerned. So long as no height restriction was violated, I don't see a big problem with this, it's how kids grow.

princess said...

No, I don't need to learn to swim. I don't take my kids to a pool. They don't belong to one.

UmassSlytherin said...

My daughter has been jumping off high diving boards and swimming without a floatie since she was just turned 4.

I have been at pools before and lifeguards have sprung up when she jumps in the deep end because she is so small. When she takes the swim test, then they know she can swim.

OP: outside of the fact that it took you a million years to say what you wanted to say in this post when it could have taken you two minutes, I think your heart is in the right place. But some small children have parents that actually teach them to swim without floatation devices. You have no idea what a child's swimming ability is unless you know the child.

Just my opinion.

MissMannah said...

I agree that the fact the nanny/mother was watching the child makes this is GOOD caretaker sighting rather than a BAD one. If she had been missing and was instead only relying on the lifeguards, I would be a lot more concerned.

littlefishy said...

What's the problem? When I was two I swam in our 9 foot deep, 20,000 gallon swimming pool. Id go down the slide & jump in, swimming from one side to the other. Yes, at two. We have it on video. I could also rollerskate well. Some kids are great swimmers. By four, that would've been nothing to me. Seriously.

MY four year can't swim at all. Everyone is different. I don't see the issue??

Susannah said...

I got a little lost reading all this, but I don't think it was so terrible.

If it were me I would have been in the water with the child.

I'm glad you were paying attention. Too many people get distracted when it comes to water activities and children.

Worlds2ndBestNanny said...

That was my thought, too.

swimmy said...

You're at a higher risk of drowning than someone who knows how to swim. You don't have to belong to a pool to drown. Your kids will be around water, pool pass or not. They should know how to swim. You should, too!! Its easy to learn, impossible to forget. Its also so much fun & great exercise. Its never ever too late! I taught my elderly neighbor how to swim. Then I couldn't keep her wrinkly self out of our pool!!

Kat said...

I think its good to be concerned but I honestly don't see the problem if the caregiver was right there beside the pool watching.

Truth Seeker said...

My opinion is..you can NEVER be too safe around kids and water.

Texas Nanny said...

Even if the kid was in danger, mistakes happen.

I recently took my two charges to a wading pool with a small water slide. They've both been on water slides before. The 3 year-old climbed up, slid down with no problems, and loved it. A couple minutes later, he slid down again... this time something went wrong. He went under and had to be grabbed by the lifeguard (I was standing a foot away with his little sister) and then was scared and crying.

I'm sure there may have been someone at the pool judging me for letting him use the slide, but as he'd done it before without issues I had no reason to suspect he'd have a problem this time.

Phoenix said...

well considering a child can drown in 2 inches of water he wasn't at any greater danger on this ride as anywhere else.

did you see the way the lifeguards behaved when other people dropped into the water? I know that when I use to go on water park rides the lifeguards would wait and watch for me just as they would anyone else to make sure that I was ok.

an adult could have had this very same thing happen to him/her.

While I understand this was scary for you. nothing bad happened and this child had the ability to swim to safety after the ride.

I think you witnessed some lifeguards doing their job very well.

praise-jesus-its-a-modern-day-miracle! said...

For the first time ever I agree with MM!

MissMannah said...

Am I MM? If so, I'm glad we agree.

Nan said...

I've been really impressed with both Miss Mannah and Pheonix's responses to posts lately. I am usually one to disagree with the majority of what they have to say but I agreed with both of their responses to this post.

Logical Skeptic said...

Jesus Christ, Princess, you think you don't need to learn to swim just because you don't belong to a pool?!?! You are aware that 75% of the world is covered in water, right? You need to learn to swim, and much more importantly, your children *really* need to learn to swim. ASAP. Don't bother posting any crap about how you or your kids are never going to be near water or whatever; I learned the Heimlich maneuver even though I don't expect to use it more than a handful of times in my life because those handful of times will save lives. You have to think about swimming the same way.

If you have some unpleasant memory or trauma associated with swimming or water, I sympathize. I hope you can find a compassionate teacher who will make it easy and not scary for you to learn, and I REALLY hope you haven't passed that fear and reluctance on to your kids.

But for God's sake, LEARN TO SWIM.

princessshopsalot said...

I wonder if the kid was older than he looked.

OP said...

I am in shock that most of you think it is perfectly fine for a 4-5 year old to swim in water this deep.

There is a ledge which the user sits on until instructed to go by the lifeguard located in that area. In order to move across the cable, one has to use their weight to push themselves across the cable while holding onto a bar.

The guards were on the deck of the pool, ready to jump in. This child struggled with the water, and I didn't see a parent present until he got close to the ladder. My friend and I were sitting in front of the lifeguard chair, and the guard mentioned that what he saw with the child was scary.

And people think nothing is wrong?

princess said...

I don't HAVE kids. I meant the kids I watch. I'm not gonna sink, I can stay afloat, but I don't care to swim and yes I almost drowned when I was younger bc my younger brother was climbing on me trying to stay up and I couldn't get up. I don't want to swim and have no need at this time in my life.

MissMannah said...

Logical Skeptic, I disagree with your assertion that everyone needs to learn how to swim. My mother had a deep fear of water, but that never hindered her children. We had a backyard pool and all of us kids went to swimming lessons. My father is a proficient swimmer. We never once had a problem.

Princess, I was a little unclear by your posts but it seems like you were saying that you don't want to learn how to swim but you still take your charges to a pool. I think this is very irresponsible. Obviously I have no problem with your decision not to learn to swim but you are putting your charges in potential danger but your lack of knowing. If I am mistaken and you do not ever go to pools with your charges, please disregard what I said.

princess said...

No no I don't take them to the pool. Earlier I said it didn't matter if I swam since I dont take the kids to the pool and I guess it looked like I meant my own kids, so she said I cant avoid them swimming at some point. But nope, I'm not taking anyone!

And I had the same thing growing up.. my mom doesn't swim but dad does. I was never scared of the water until I was a preteen and had the incident with my brother.

why so shocked? said...

OP,
Why are you shocked? child has been swimming in deep water for years. She is six.

The lifeguards did not jump in. Obviously the child was not drowning or they would have jumped in the water, which it sounds from your last post that they did not.

zzz said...

Well, actually if he can stand in the water he is at less risk of drowning than if the water is ten feet deep, he gets tired & can't tread anymore. So yes, the depth can matter. A child can drown in two inches of water but that has nothing to do this.

urMM said...

Yes! ;-)

littlefishy said...

By the time I was TWO years old, I swam in a nine foot swimming pool every day all summer. So of course I don't have a problem with this. This childs parents decide what is safe for him. You don't know the kid. Maybe he has been an avid little swimmer since he was very young. By age five, a "ride" like this would've been a cake walk to me. I bet it can look scary, but that doesn't mean it is. Just bc a lifeguard thought it looked scary doesn't mean it was. I bet it looked scary when I swam just as it looked scary when I did flips off of a stage at age five. Some kids are born athletes. I think Id be too focused on my own kids to bat an eyelash @ what someone else is doing. Its nice that you care. But I think its unwarranted.

Laura said...

I'm a lifeguard and I know from experience that guards, ESPECIALLY ones at water parks, will go in if they have any doubt whatsoever that the person can't get themselves out. If they didn't go in, I trust their judgement and will assume the child wasn't struggling enough to warrant a rescue.

Tina Marie said...

I agree that everyone should learn how to swim....especially at a young age. Swimming is a skill one MUST possess because you never know when it may save your life. Even if one is afraid of water in general, one must get over the fear.

I was afraid of driving since I was in a minor accident as a teen-ager. I didn't learn to drive until I was 33!! I had to force myself to learn to drive because it is a skill that EVERYONE needs to know. Suppose you were a passenger in a car or bus and the driver had a heart-attack? Same w/swimming. Suppose you saw a young child (or even an adult) drowning and they were screaming for help?? Could you just stand by and watch?

Laura said...

Tina Marie, you said it!!!

littlefishy said...

When my now grown daughter fell into the swimming pool, she was two years old & I was a foot from her. Thank god I had been swiiming in that pool since I was a baby & that had also been swimming since she was a baby.

Once she swam to the top & I pulled her out, I was so spooked that I took her & ran in the house & then into the front yard. We sat under a tree, where my neighbor came out & sat with us. Before I could say anything, she told me that she had a nightmare the night before that my baby had drowned!!!!!!!!!!

urinsufferable said...

Of course you do.....

ericsmom said...

If you have a pool in your backyard, everyone in that house needs to know how to swim. What if your kid fell in and needed help?

swim-fan said...

I hope the non-swimmer, princess, should learn how to swim. Not only for safety reasons. But also because it will boost her self esteem, its very good for your body, especially if you have arthritis. You have arthritis or joint problems, correct? Please consider what were all saying. We care.

Just My Two Cents Just Now said...

I agree w/you Tina Marie that EVERYONE should posses swimming skills. It is a no-brainer.

I had a horrific fear of H20 when I was a kid, but my parents forced me to take swimming lessons quite early.

I hated them for it at the time, but now as an adult I can see why it was so important to them.

I feel very sad for people, especially adults who cannot swim.

I live in CA and since everyone is in the water all year round, one must know how to swim.

binghamtonnanny said...

My twin charges were jumping off the diving boards at the local pool at the age of 3. When they first started swimming in the deep water, they struggled, but under the close supervision of myself and the life guards, I was never worried about them drowning. The first time they were allowed to jump off those diving boards, their confidence was boosted and they were even more determined to become better swimmers, learn to dive, etc. If they are never allowed to try, how will they ever learn?