Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- An off-duty nurse saved a boy from drowning at a party in Eagle Mountain.
- Jason Thorpe, 12, was unresponsive after attempting to hold his breath underwater.
- The boy is in ICU; a GoFundMe supports his family's medical expenses.
EAGLE MOUNTAIN — The mother of a sixth-grade boy said her son is recovering but is in the ICU after he was found unresponsive in a hot tub Friday night.
Anne Thorpe said her 12-year-old son Jason was celebrating his last day of sixth grade Friday when the accident happened.
"They were in the hot tub playing at their house just next door to my house," Thorpe said. "From what we've heard, they were all talking about how long each other could hold their breath underwater. And they were saying, like, two minutes and three minutes, and someone said five minutes, and someone said, 'Nobody can hold their breath for five minutes.' And, I don't know how it came about that my son ended up trying to hold his breath for five minutes."
They believe at some point he passed out while holding his breath. An adult at the party pulled Jason from the water. Thorpe said one of the moms who was there is an off-duty nurse.
"If she hadn't been there in that moment, I mean, even a minute longer, we would be dealing with a completely different story," she said. "We're bonded forever, and I owe her everything. So she was telling me the importance of knowing how to do CPR first of all, and second of all, of knowing how to do CPR correctly."
Thorpe said the woman performed CPR for about seven to nine minutes until firefighters and deputies arrived. Jason was taken to Primary Children's Hospital in Lehi, where he's been sedated, intubated and he's on a ventilator. His mom said this won't be an easy recovery.
"The first 72 hours, anything can happen," Thorpe said. "Things can look really good one minute and then the next minute, we've got swelling on the brain or other things, like he's developed pneumonia now. And so luckily they kind of assumed that was going to happen and started him on antibiotics right away."
She said this could have happened to anyone.
"He plays lacrosse, he is a wrestler and he is a very strong swimmer," Thorpe said. "The kids that were with them were not aware of what to look for. Being underwater too long is not cool. It's not funny. You don't need to prove anything. You're not a fish, you know, like, we're human and we're only designed to be underwater for so long."
Jason's teacher, Karen Harvie Jensen, organized a GoFundMe* for his family. His family is facing big medical bills and the road ahead could be a long one.
*KSL does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
