Posted on 03/21/2008 9:55:13 AM PDT by Lijahsbubbe
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Abigail Taylor, the 6-year-old girl whose injury in a swimming pool led to federal legislation to make pools safer, died Thursday evening, her family's attorney said.
Bob Bennett, an attorney for the Taylor family, said Abigail's parents were with her when she died at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.
"The world's less better off without Abigail Taylor," Bennett said.
Kara Haworth, spokeswoman for the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, confirmed that Abigail had died. She said she could not comment further. She said Abigail's doctors were not available on Friday.
Abigail, of Edina, was injured June 29 when she sat on a wading pool drain at the Minneapolis Golf Club in St. Louis Park and its powerful suction ripped out part of her intestinal tract. She underwent transplant surgery at the Nebraska hospital to receive a new small bowel, liver and pancreas.
She later suffered setbacks, including a cancerous condition sometimes triggered by organ transplants.
After she was injured, her parents, Scott and Katey Taylor, campaigned for legislation that could help prevent similar accidents. In December, Congress approved legislation to ban the manufacture, sale or distribution of drain covers that don't meet anti-entrapment safety standards.
The legislation, the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, is named for another victim, the 7-year-old granddaughter of former Secretary of State James Baker. She drowned at a graduation party in 2002, when the suction from a drain pinned her.
Minnesota lawmakers are also considering new pool safety regulations.
Sen. Geoff Michel, who is pushing new pool safety regulations at the state level, called the Taylors "a very amazing family" after he learned of Abigail's death.
"They have held up and been held up for such a tough, tough road. I just feel terrible for them," he said.
Michel, a Republican from Edina, said he was optimistic that the bill would pass. "It was a pretty compelling case already," he said.
He said Scott Taylor had promised his daughter that he would get the law changed.
"He's made the promise and we want to help him fulfill that," Michel said.
Bennett said the Taylors wouldn't be available to comment Friday. In November, the family brought a lawsuit against the golf club and Sta-Rite Industries, the pool equipment manufacturer owned by Pentair of Golden Valley.
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Associated Press writers Brian Bakst and Chris Williams contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AP-NY-03-21-08 1131EDT
ping
Federal legislation?
This was so sad. I have heard of a few other cases where this has happened.
The poor little thing spent the rest of her days in the hospital and underwent about twelve operations. :(
Thanks.
I saw that and just cried.
Of course, it’s very tragic especially to lose a child.<p.I hope it’s not too crass, but I was shocked at the continuing role of the feds to make us safer. Their tentacles are everywhere.
I remember hearing of a similar case about 15 years ago and it scared the crap out of me since my kids were in and out of pools all the time. It’s one of those things that you just never think about until something happens. Sad sad sad.
MM
This was the case, IIRC, where our favorite ambulance chases John Edwards used disgusting tactics to arrange a suit against the maunfacturer of the drain cover (which was removed by pool staff).
Poor girl.
IIRC, wasn’t the pool properly designed, but someone removed the protective covering?
I guess we remember the same thing.
I can’t remember ever hearing about this kind of tragedy before, and I grew up around pools. swimming was my life. Playing around a drain was just something we kids did.
When you say the protective cover, do you mean the circular grid?
Ours were too. I think about the times when our girls would go in hot tubs and they had long hair. I just never would have thought about the suction on the drain.
I don’t know much about the details about what happened with the drain.
I live in Minneapolis, so I’m really familiar with Abbigail’s story and I was saddened to see that she had died.
There are so many wading or shallow pools now for toddlers, and they all sit in the water. I think that’s the kind of area that Abbigail was playing in.
I think that's what it is, spreading the suction out over a large area instead of just at the little hole. Edwards must have been drooling as soon as he heard this happened.
buy she was just a child...they don't vote so they don't count for much.....
Yes, the drain cover.
It wasn’t defective, it was removed.
In fact, the company that made the cover even printed “DO NOT REMOVE” on it in an attempt to cover their own ass.
Edwards used it as evidence that they knew the cover could be removed and the company had to settle or go broke.
RIP. Prayers for her family.
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