The Fayette Citizen-News Page
Wednesday, August 25, 1999
Toddler drowns in swimming

By MONROE ROARK
Staff Writer

A morning of play at a neighbor's swimming pool ended in tragedy last Thursday for a Fayette County toddler.

According to reports, 2-year-old Shane Smith was found in the pool by a Federal Express employee who was delivering a package at the location of the incident, east of Fayetteville on Ga. Highway 54. Deputies responded to the call at about 10 a.m. and attempted to revive the child with CPR.

The boy had wandered off with his 5-year-old sister while their mother slept, according to Maj. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department. The pool, which was located on the adjacent property, was not fenced in.

The two children were living with their mother in an RV parked next to her parents' home. The grandmother, Barbara Hardin, told investigators that everyone was inside the RV and did not realize the boy was gone.

Christine, Shane's sister, told authorities that he slid off a slide into the pool, and that she went in and pulled him out.

Shane was pronounced dead shortly after 11 a.m. at Fayette Community Hospital.


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