Miami Chief of Police Manuel Morales is criticizing the operators of an alleged illegal short-term rental as a 1-year-old boy fights for his life after he nearly drowned in the pool of a Miami home last week.
"I am filled with anger, heartbreak, and disappointment as we witness a child clinging to life and a family of tourists desperately holding on to hope," Morales said in a statement Tuesday. "This tragic situation has arisen because those who valued profit over human life chose to disregard the simple laws designed to keep people safe."
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The incident happened shortly before 12 p.m. Friday at a home in the 6200 block of North Miami Avenue in Miami's Little Haiti neighborhood.
Miami Police officials said officers responded to the scene after receiving a frantic call about a child drowning in a swimming pool in the backyard.
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Officers began CPR before the boy was rushed by Miami Fire Rescue to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center in critical condition, officials said.
"This is the one thing where these officers stepped out of their role as far as protecting to saving lives and this is what they did ," Fire Rescue Lt. Ignatius Carroll said.
The child's father, who didn't want to speak to NBC6 on camera, said the family was in Miami for vacation and was supposed to head back home on Saturday. The child turned 1 year and 7 months old on Friday.
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Authorities said the circumstances surrounding the incident will be investigated.
"There’s a lot of factors, we need to see if the child or children were properly supervised. Where were the parents, did they step out and leave the children alone?" Miami Police Capt. Freddie Cruz said. "There's a lot of factors that go into play and that's up to the detectives and that's gonna take some time."
"As the investigation into this devastating incident continues, we’re kindly asking the community to keep the 1-year-old child and his family in prayer as he remains in critical condition at the hospital," police said in a statement. "The Miami Police Victims Advocate Unit was requested to offer essential services and compassionate support to the family during this difficult time."
No other information was immediately known.
"The operators of what amounts to an illegal short-term rental business have created conditions that have caused immense suffering. The Miami Police Department is using every tool at its disposal to hold the operators of Airbnb accountable for their reckless and callous actions," Morales said. "Our thoughts are with the child fighting for their life and the family enduring this nightmare. We will not rest until justice is served for them and the community."
In a statement, Airbnb said they deactivated the listing while their safety team investigates.
"Our hearts go out to the family, and we have reached out to offer them our support," Airbnb's statement read.
Florida is ranked the highest in the U.S. for unintentional drowning deaths among children ages 1-4. The website Child Fatality Prevention says Florida has seen record-high levels of child drownings in the last three years. The highest was 99 in 2021. There were 93 in 2022 and 94 last year.
