Mom who died saving son kept him above water until rescue

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Mom who died saving son kept him above water until rescue

Michelle L. Price, Associated Press

Updated 5:47 pm, Friday, August 26, 2016


SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A mother was enjoying a family boat trip across Lake Powell when she heard a scream and splash. Her 2-year-old son had slipped off their houseboat and into the water.

Chelsey Russell, a 35-year-old mother of two from Lakewood, Colorado, jumped in to rescue her son. She managed to keep the toddler above water for five agonizing minutes until a relative pulled him safely back onto the boat.

But by that point, Russell was unconscious. She was pulled from the water and rushed to shore at the nearby marina, where bystanders and officials performed CPR Tuesday afternoon.

After about 30 minutes, they determined they couldn't save the woman who just rescued her son.

No link yet.

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[center]

Chelsey Russell [/center]

[williesgirl]

1. How sad.

[csziggy]

2. I'm sorry she lost her life - it was so unnecessary

From the article linked in the OP:

The sheriff said neither Russell nor her son wore life jackets. They are required for boaters under 12, according to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.

Sometimes I catch some of the shows with game wardens. One of the things they enforce completely is the use of life jackets. In some states it is mandatory for every person in the boat, not just for children. I am always amazed at the people who complain when they are told they have to have a life saving device.

If the child and his mother had been wearing life jackets, she would be alive today.

[yuiyoshida]

3. Just a question

Why aren't swimming lessons more available? So many die each year because they can't swim, tread water, or learn to float. I was taught to swim at 9 years old. I was lucky enough to go to a summer camp for girls.

[jtuck004]

6. Because we think making bank$ters rich is more important than investing in ourselves.

Apparently.

[Maru Kitteh]

19. That's a lazy answer.

Individual communities make these decisions. Ask yours to sacrifice 1/4 of a penny per $100 to expand community enrichment and they will usually vote it down.

Oh, and the $ in place of an S? Cute the first brillion times we saw it.

[Judi Lynn]

20. The larger picture indicates you're right. n/t

[WinstonSmith4740]

4. This is very sad.

But something about this story just isn't sitting right with me. If she went into the water immediately upon hearing the splash, why did it take 5 minutes for someone else to pull him back in? Even if the boat was moving away from them, there should have been a life preserver somewhere on that boat. I've seen those rental boats, and walked through them...they have life preservers. How could she have kept that child above water for 5 minutes if she was unconscious for any amount of time? Did the other adult pull the kid back on board and then the mom passed out? I'm not a great swimmer, but in this kind of situation adrenaline kicks in, and strength and stamina goes off the scale. And who the hell lets a 2 year old wander around unsupervised on a boat without a life jacket on? Like I said, this is very sad...tragic even. Maybe I'm getting too old and skeptic about stuff, but something here doesn't smell right.

[busterbrown]

5. Many of us are thinking the same thing..

But no one has gone there on this thread except you... But its almost impossible not to question the events as written in the original post..

[WinstonSmith4740]

7. Thanks...

I know everyone here is absolutely capable of critical thinking. It really pains me to go in this direction with this, but like I said, something ain't right here. This is one of those time I really hope I'm wrong.

[vinny9698]

13. Myabe the boat was in motiton and those house boats are not very manuverable.

It take time to move those type of boats.

[yardwork]

11. I'm thinking the same thing.

First, they both should have been wearing life jackets. Next, why did it take five minutes to rescue the child? Nobody else could jump in and help? Maybe nobody could swim? Was there alcohol involved? And yes, as you point out, at what point did the woman lose consciousness? Coincidentally exactly when the child was rescued from her arms?

Or, did something different happen entirely?

[pnwmom]

16. The mother's heart condition led to a fatal arrhythmia. n/t

[JI7]

17. it was her heart problem which killed her

[PersonNumber503602]

24. Perhaps there was alcohol involved (likely given my experiences)

and as a result, the response was not as effective as it would have been otherwise.

But yeah, it does seem very odd.

[bpositive]

8. Amazing

I would consider her a hero.

[busterbrown]

9. Interesting..

I wish i could only look at the positive side...but.....but...
Ah I hope like hell, i’m wrong...

[DeadEyeDyck]

10. R.I.P. pretty lady

you earned a special place in heaven

[FLPanhandle]

12. As a life long boater, this was all avoidable.

1) Children should be trained to swim. I had mine in classes before their first birthday.

2) Young children should never be on a boat without a life jacket.

3) Treading water with a 2 year old should not be a big deal. Not something to drown you unless you don't know how to swim. If the mom didn't know how to swim, she should have been wearing a life jacket.

4) Who was running the boat? It must have been someone who didn't know what they were doing to take 5 mins to return.

Very sad story that should not have happened.

[pnwmom]

14. The classes are fine but anyone who trusts them to make a toddler water-proof is taking a risk.

I don't know why they weren't wearing life jackets, but the mother had a heart condition. An arrhythmia caused her death.

[pnwmom]

15. *** MORE DETAILS HERE ***

http://www.denverpost.com/2016/08/26/chelsey-russell-athlete-mother-drowns-saving-child/

Russell, a 35-year-old associate at the Denver law firm Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley, had taken her two children, ages 2 and 5, to join her mother and brother, Cayman Hood, on a houseboat in Lake Powell in southern Utah.

SNIP

On Tuesday afternoon, they had almost made it back to dock at the Halls Crossing Marina when her toddler son fell overboard. Russell, a skilled athlete, dived in to save him.

Russell’s brother jumped into the dinghy and sped to help his sister, and when he got to her, the boy was on her chest and she was not responsive.

SNIP

CPR was administered on the emergency rescue boat that arrived and also on land at the marina, but she never recovered.

Her family said she died from a rare cardiac arrhythmia and that she had suffered from heart problems in childhood.

[Judi Lynn]

21. Thank you, pnwmom. n/t

[milestogo]

18. Boating without a personal flotation device

is a bad idea.

[joeyfalconhead90]

22. One of the saddest things I have read

Honestly heartbreaking. Rest in peace

[narnian60]

23. Yes.

[Judi Lynn]

25. Chelsey Russell, mother who drowned saving her child, overcame heart problems to become skilled athl

Chelsey Russell, mother who drowned saving her child, overcame heart problems to become skilled athlete

Russell was a 35-year-old associate at the Denver law firm Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley

By Colleen O'Connor | [e-mail]
PUBLISHED: August 26, 2016 at 5:02 pm | UPDATED: August 27, 2016 at 9:33 am



When tragedy struck, Chelsey Russell had just finished a relaxing summer vacation with family and friends and was looking forward to starting a new chapter in her life.

“We’d just had the most incredible week, our little family,” her mother, Trisha Hood, said Friday. “It is unfathomable how this happened.”

Russell, a 35-year-old associate at the Denver law firm Welborn Sullivan Meck & Tooley, had taken her two children, ages 2 and 5, to join her mother and brother, Cayman Hood, on a houseboat in Lake Powell in southern Utah.

. . .

Her family said she died from a rare cardiac arrhythmia and that she had suffered from heart problems in childhood.

http://www.denverpost.com/2016/08/26/chelsey-russell-athlete-mother-drowns-saving-child/