Family warns of electric shock drowning after girl, 9, dies in pool accident
McKenzie Kinley’s parents are warning others about the dangers of electric shock drowning after she was electrocuted by a pool light that needed repair.
A 9-year-old girl died Sunday in a tragic accident in her family’s pool.
McKenzie Kinley was swimming at her father’s house in Citrus Heights, California, when she was electrocuted by a wire attached to an underwater pool light that was under repair, NBC affiliate KCRA in Sacramento reported.
First responders attempted to save McKenzie, but it was too late, her father, Cliff Kinley, said in an interview with CBS Sacramento.
Friends and family called McKenzie Kinley a “spitfire” who was loved by everyone who knew her.
Friends and family called McKenzie Kinley a “spitfire” who was loved by everyone who knew her. Courtesy of Elizabeth Moore
There were four other children in the pool at the time of the accident, including McKenzie’s younger sister and three friends, but they were not harmed.
Family and friends describe McKenzie as a “spitfire” who was always active, and loved being outdoors.
“Swimming, fishing, camping made her happy. That’s what her life was about,” her dad told CBS Sacramento.
9-Year-Old Dies After Being Electrocuted in Swimming Pool
“She was just so kind and loving and she could be friends with anyone that she met no matter what,” one school friend said. Courtesy of Elizabeth Moore
The rising 5th-grader was also a cheerleader, played soccer and was the emcee for her school’s talent show.
Her classmates remember her as a kind and thoughtful friend.
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“She was just so kind and loving and she could be friends with anyone that she met no matter what,” friend Aaron Hernandez, 12, told KCRA. “No matter what their differences were. She would always find a way for them to be friends.”
NBC News reached out to the family but didn’t receive a response.
Many people are unaware of the risks of electric shock drowning. It can occur when electricity from a boat, dock, or marina — or a pool light, in this most recent case — seeps into the water, according to the Electric Shock Drowning Prevention Association (ESDPA). Swimmers’ muscles are paralyzed by the electricity, and they drown.
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