Toddler drowns in backyard pool in Parker County

A 2-year-old boy was pronounced dead at a Weatherford hospital Monday night after paramedics found him facedown in a backyard pool, the Parker County Sheriff’s Department reported.

The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office identified the toddler as Hunter Jackson, 2, of Weatherford. He was pronounced dead at 7:15 p.m.

The drowning occurred in the Western Lake Estates housing development at 6:30 p.m., said Deputy Danie Huffman, a Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman.

Emergency medical service providers and firefighters performed CPR on the boy until he was taken to Weatherford Regional Medical Center, Huffman said.

“Dispatch notified us sometime after 7 p.m. that the boy died,” she said.

Huffman did not know who was with the boy. She said sheriff’s investigators were still on the scene at 9:30 p.m.

“Don’t turn your back on children in the pool for a second,” Huffman said.

At least 11 kids have drowned in Tarrant, Dallas and Parker counties this summer, according to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. At least 44 kids have drowned statewide, not counting the toddler’s death, according to the agency’s site.

At least 49 children had drowned in Texas at this time last year, according to the Star-Telegram archives.

— Monica S. Nagy

This story was originally published July 20, 2015 at 10:39 PM with the headline "Toddler drowns in backyard pool in Parker County."