Intex Easy Set

Portable pools pose big dangers

Brian McLaughlin and his wife, Melissa, have three children who love to splash around in their 18-inch-deep plastic kiddie pool on hot summer days.

But Samantha, 7; Erin, 5; and Brendan, 1 1/2, can't use the pool unless a parent is watching them, and the water gets dumped out after they're done.

"No matter how you look at it, it's still a pool and somebody could get hurt in it," Brian McLaughlin said.

The McLaughlins' attention to safety sounds like common sense. But a new academic study shows parents might be overlooking some of the serious dangers portable, inflatable pools can pose.

As the kiddie pools have become more affordable and widely available, the number of drowning deaths and injuries associated with them has risen as well, according to a study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

"It's a huge concern for us. We're not surprised the number of drownings has gone up," said Don Mays, senior director of product safety for Consumer Reports.

Retailers and manufacturers warn buyers of the risks in using the pools, and parents say some common-sense precautions are needed to keep children safe in the water.

"We are always right there," said Ann Dudeck, who said she and her husband, Josh, keep close watch on 19-month-old Ben when he uses the 1-foot-deep plastic pool in their West Seneca yard.

Portable pools are popular with families who have very young children, who can't afford a permanent above-ground or in-ground pool or who don't want the extra work involved in maintaining those pools.

A search of the Toys "R" Us website finds listings for 38 kiddie pools, while Target's website has 31 of them for sale.

The Target portable pools range in price from $14.98 to $1,600 for a model with a metal frame, ladder and pump.

A Target spokeswoman declined to comment for this story, and Toys "R" Us and manufacturers Intex and General Foam Plastics didn't return phone messages Monday.

But the makers and sellers of these pools recognize the hazards. The Intex 12-foot by 36-inch-deep Easy Set Pool on the Toys "R" Us website carries this safety warning:

"Children are at high risk of drowning. Keep children in direct sight and stay close whenever they are in OR near this pool."

Portable, inflatable pools were the site of 209 fatal drownings from 2001 to 2009, accounting for 11 percent of all pool drownings, according to the study in the journal Pediatrics. The great majority of victims were younger than 5.

Intex Easy Set 18-Foot-by-42-Inch Round Pool Set inflatable Medium ...

Intex Easy Set 18-Foot-by-42-Inch Round Pool Set inflatable Medium-size

This 18-foot diameter Intex Easy Set pool is easy to assemble and includes a 1,500gph filter pump, ladder, ground cloth, debris cover, deluxe maintenance kit, 11-1/2-inch air inflation foot pump, and surface skimmer.

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