An Attleboro, Massachusetts, couple recently realized the ladder designed to keep their 2-year-old boy from accidentally drowning in the swimming pool didn't work.
Keith and Tonya Wyman share the fear any parent would experience after what could have been a tragic accident.
“If I turned my back for a minute, he would have been right in,” Tonya said.
Their son, Cody, was easily able to scale the locked ladder, which the Wymans believe is an essential flaw in the design of the ladder. Kids at that age can climb and the slats that are in the door should be more solid, they said.
The Wymans wanted to spread the word so other parents can take caution before trusting safety ladders.
“We grabbed him right there. He was no more than four feet away from us at that time. So I said to my wife, Tonya, we need to do this again and video it,” Keith said. “People need to be aware of this.”
Keith thought that the video he posted to Facebook would serve as a local warning to pool owners lulled into thinking safety ladders are equipped with complete protection.
But the clip of Cody scaling the locked ladder has gotten international attention, racking up more than 14 million views. It has been shared 465,000 times.
Both parents say there is no substitute for keeping an eye on kids, but the fact that Cody was able to climb so quickly proves even little distractions can lead to major accidents.
"You get a message. You turn your head for a second. And you're too involved in reading that. In the meantime he could be in the pool," Keith said.
The Wymans let the swimming pool store know about the faulty ladder and the store offered to give them any other ladder in exchange. But all of the ladders had essentially the same design, the Wymans found.
The couple will be talking to the manufacturer Monday, hoping they can initiate a design change.
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