Arizona

Drowning epidemic of 1989 led to many modern safety measures

Published

2 years ago

April 29, 2024

Drowning epidemic of 1989 led to many modern safety measures

PHOENIX — This year, 12 people have died in water incidents in Maricopa and Pinal counties. Four of those 12 deaths involved children aged 5 or under.

Several of these have occurred within the last weeks as temperatures rose across the Valley.

With the hottest months ahead, local officials are sounding the alarm.

The “drowning epidemic” of 1989

Jay Arthur, president of the Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona and a former Phoenix Fire Captain, said drowning is an issue that has gripped the Valley for decades.

The issue was especially pronounced during the summer of 1989.

“It was basically considered an epidemic,” Arthur said.

There were there were 243 calls for drownings in Maricopa County from January 1988 through December 1989, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Fire departments in the Valley began to prioritize water incidents in 1989. This move has since became commonplace throughout the nation, Arthur said.

“They created a thing called the SWIM Team, and it stood for Stop Water Infant Mortality,” he added.

The SWIM Team was a taskforce that brought local fire captains together to tackle the issue of child drownings. That’s where common water safety phrases like “Just a few seconds” came from. It was a common thing first responders heard from parents when describing what led up to water incidents.

“We actually reduced drowning incidents from 103 to 48 in a year,” Arthur said.

That eventually became what is now known as the Drowning Prevention Coalition of Arizona. Its goal is to promote water safety messaging.

Tips to fight the drowning epidemic

To this day, the coalition and local fire departments emphasize water safety prevention, notably the “ABCs” to prevent pool drownings:

Adult Supervision: A sober adult should be with children in the water with the sole focus of watching the swimmers.
Barrier: Pool fences and covers can prevent children from getting into the pool when unattended.
Classes: Young children should be taken to swimming classes. Teens and adults should know CPR. Swimmers who have not taken classes should wear a life jacket.

Arthur believes the “B” of the “ABCs” is something all parents need to do to protect their children.

However, he also acknowledges that fences and other barriers can be expensive and may not always be an option.

“Locks, latches and alarms on your doors are really helpful and inexpensive,” he said.

In other words, lock down any access to the backyard so children cannot get into the pool by themselves. Keep those locks high so children can’t reach them.

“It’s not about being a great parent or not,” Arthur added. “When we have multiple kids, trying to feed the family, cook and clean, we divert our attention, and we can’t keep track of everyone every second of the day.”

When tragedy strikes

If an incident does happen, Arthur says it’s important to act quickly. Drownings can happen in seconds and may be totally silent.

“Get them out of the pool,” he said.

Remove the person from the pool and immediately begin CPR. If this is not done, then the chances of survival are grim, he added.

“We don’t ever want to see a child in a pool when we get there,” Arthur said.

Most of the time first responders arrive and the child is already out of the pool.

“You’ve got an emotionally charged scene,” he said. “A lot of times parents not doing CPR; they’re screaming … begging for us to being their child back to life.”

Doing CPR is critical because it increases the chances of survival — and the chances of a successful recovery. If you are performing CPR on a drowning victim, focus on helping them breathe. Don’t focus on compressions, Arthur said.

“If they wake up to a conscious level, are they going to wake up to a viable brain? To where they can function normally for the rest of their life? It’s all about you giving that breath,” Arthur said.

You can find a list of CPR classes offered throughout the Valley here.

We want to hear from you.

Have a story idea or tip? Pass it along to the KTAR News team here.

Source link

Related Topics:92.3 KTAR Featured Home Phoenix and Arizona Breaking News And News Headlines - Home

Click to comment

Arizona

3 men sentenced in Arizona for multi-million dollar scam against Amazon

Published

1 hour ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

3 men sentenced in Arizona for multi-million dollar scam against Amazon

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Three Valley men have been sentenced for their roles in what prosecutors described as a “sophisticated fraud scheme” against an online shopping giant.

In a news release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Mughith Faisal, 29, of Glendale, was sentenced on Feb. 5 to 18 months in prison. His brother, Basheer Faisal, 28, of Glendale, was also recently ordered to spend 18 months in prison.

The feds said a third defendant in the case, Abdullah Alwan, 28, of Surprise, was sentenced to six months in prison after the trio pleaded guilty to wire fraud.

Prosecutors said the three were also each ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution to Amazon.

According to federal officials, Alwan worked in Amazon’s logistics division and left the company in 2021 when he reportedly used his knowledge to manipulate rates for transportation deliveries assigned to Amazon’s third-party carriers.

The feds said Basheer and Mughith Faisal used “Blue Line Transport” to knowingly get to increased transport rates that Alwan would then input into Amazon’s system, ripping them off out of $4.5 million.

The FBI’s Phoenix Division helped in the investigation, which was then prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.

See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.

Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.

Source link

Arizona

Arizona Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 results for March 3, 2026

Published

13 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Arizona Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 results for March 3, 2026

The Arizona Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at Tuesday, March 3, 2026 results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers

07-21-53-54-62, Mega Ball: 16

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers

2-0-8

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Fantasy 5 numbers

02-05-18-27-41

Check Fantasy 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Triple Twist numbers

11-14-17-19-23-24

Check Triple Twist payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news and results

What time is the Powerball drawing?

Powerball drawings are at 7:59 p.m. Arizona time on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

How much is a Powerball lottery ticket today?

In Arizona, Powerball tickets cost $2 per game, according to the Arizona Lottery.

How to play the Powerball

To play, select five numbers from 1 to 69 for the white balls, then select one number from 1 to 26 for the red Powerball.

You can choose your lucky numbers on a play slip or let the lottery terminal randomly pick your numbers.

To win, match one of the 9 Ways to Win:

5 white balls + 1 red Powerball = Grand prize.
5 white balls = $1 million.
4 white balls + 1 red Powerball = $50,000.
4 white balls = $100.
3 white balls + 1 red Powerball = $100.
3 white balls = $7.
2 white balls + 1 red Powerball = $7.
1 white ball + 1 red Powerball = $4.
1 red Powerball = $4.

There’s a chance to have your winnings increased two, three, four, five and 10 times through the Power Play for an additional $1 per play. Players can multiply non-jackpot wins up to 10 times when the jackpot is $150 million or less.

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All Arizona Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $100 and may redeem winnings up to $599. For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at Arizona Lottery offices. By mail, send a winner claim form, winning lottery ticket and a copy of a government-issued ID to P.O. Box 2913, Phoenix, AZ 85062.

To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a winner claim form and deliver the form, along with the ticket and government-issued ID to any of these locations:

Phoenix Arizona Lottery Office: 4740 E. University Drive, Phoenix, AZ 85034, 480-921-4400. Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, closed holidays. This office can cash prizes of any amount.

Tucson Arizona Lottery Office: 2955 E. Grant Road, Tucson, AZ 85716, 520-628-5107. Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, closed holidays. This office can cash prizes of any amount.

Phoenix Sky Harbor Lottery Office: Terminal 4 Baggage Claim, 3400 E. Sky Harbor Blvd., Phoenix, AZ 85034, 480-921-4424. Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Sunday, closed holidays. This office can cash prizes up to $49,999.

Kingman Arizona Lottery Office: Inside Walmart, 3396 Stockton Hill Road, Kingman, AZ 86409, 928-753-8808. Hours: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, closed holidays. This office can cash prizes up to $49,999.

Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://www.arizonalottery.com/.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Arizona Republic editor. You can send feedback using this form.

Source link

Arizona

Autopsies show Arizona teens were both shot in the head while camping

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Autopsies show Arizona teens were both shot in the head while camping

Two teenagers were fatally shot while camping northeast of Phoenix in May 2025.
Both Evan Clark, 17, and Pandora Kjolsrud, 18, were shot in the head, autopsy reports said.
A 31-year-old man was arrested and indicted on two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths.

A 17-year-old boy who was fatally shot while camping with a female classmate northeast of Phoenix died from gunshot wounds to the head, according to the first page of his autopsy report.

Evan Clark, 17, and Pandora Kjolsrud, 18, were camping just off State Route 87 near Mount Ord when the two were shot and killed. Investigators discovered their bodies, which had been moved into nearby brush to conceal them, on May 26, 2025.

The first page of Clark’s autopsy report, which The Arizona Republic obtained March 3, found that his death was a homicide with multiple gunshot wounds to the head. The first page of Kjolsrud’s autopsy report also ruled her death a homicide with her cause of death being gunshot wounds to the head and upper body.

Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office detectives ultimately arrested Thomas Brown, 31, of Chandler on Oct. 2, 2025, in connection with their deaths. Brown was indicted on two counts of first-degree murder and remained in jail on a $2 million cash-only bond.

Detectives found Brown’s DNA on gloves inside Clark’s SUV that had Kjolsrud’s blood on them as well, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Partial autopsy reports made available following legal fight

While The Republic has obtained the first pages of both Clark’s and Kjolsrud’s autopsy reports, the remaining pages appeared to remain sealed as of March 3 since Simone Kjolsrud, Pandora’s mother, petitioned to have the autopsy reports sealed or redacted. Simone Kjolsrud argued that various details about her daughter and aspects of her personal life, potentially included in such documents, should remain private and outweigh the public’s right to know.

A Sept. 25, 2025, motion that sought to block the report’s release argued the report could contain information law enforcement hasn’t yet shared and could impair the ongoing criminal investigation.

“Simone Kjolsrud fears that, if released, her daughter’s Medical Examiner’s Report may end up on the internet or be broadcast on the news, which would undoubtedly cause additional trauma and even jeopardize her constitutional right to justice in this case,” the motion stated.

Kjolsrud asked that Clark’s autopsy be sealed as well, arguing that it would likely contain details similar to her daughter’s.

Matthew Kelley, an attorney representing The Republic and other Arizona media outlets, previously objected to the autopsies being sealed and asked that the temporary protective order be vacated.

“To be sure, these killings are particularly traumatic for a surviving family member,” Kelley wrote in his objection. “But the pain felt by a family member cannot override the public’s right to inspect public records reflecting the performance of law enforcement and other public agencies entrusted with investigating such crimes. A veil of secrecy only raises unnecessary speculation about such public performance.”

It was not immediately clear whether Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Fish, who initially ordered the autopsies remain sealed as he reviewed their contents, would unseal additional pages in their entirety or with redactions.

Reach the reporter Perry Vandell at perry.vandell@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-2474. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @PerryVandell.

Source link