William Corben, his face is a reminder on why Pool gates must never be propped opened |
Propped opened pool gates, a sliding door breached via the removal of a bracket and a lack of supervision contributed to the death of William Corben. Coroner John Lock ruled that the owners of the home should be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions for further review for failing to supervise a child under 12. It comes as 13 other children in Queensland since July 1 2012 lost their lives due to intentional pool fence breaches. Swimming pool laws were amended after the death of Hannah Plint in 2007.
In 2008 Coroner Kaye Ryan ruled an illegally built deck between the house verandah and the pool fence contributed to her death. A deliberate breach to the building code by an owner builder. The house was then sold to the Plints with approvals from Council and a Private certifier. How could pool safety have gone so horribly wrong? The Plints fought for change so others wouldn’t endure their pain. The Corben’s, Mrs Kelly Taylor, the Tognola’s are all families fighting to save your kids around Pool and Water safety. Yet, the trolls in their uneducated views find it easier to simply blame mum. The targeting of mothers via social media, emails and even snail mail is a gross injustice that contributes to further heartache.
Since the overhaul in 2009 and 2010 under BOLA 1 and 2, deaths in Qld have dramatically reduced for toddlers under five years of age. Compulsory certification has contributed to a reduction in deaths from 15 children on average to currently four in the previous year (2015). The last domestic pool death for a toddler under five was in March of 2015. This death was investigated at the same as William Corben.