A child who drowned in a backyard pool in Arizona miraculously made a stunning, unexpected recovery several hours later.
The drowning occurred on Super Bowl Sunday. As the game was being played, police officers in the town of Gilbert were called to a home where a child had been found in a backyard pool around 5:30 pm.
“First responders performed life-saving measures on scene before the child was rushed to a nearby hospital, where the child was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m.” according to local station KTVK.
But then, several hours later, around 11:30 pm, suddenly the child began displaying signs of life. The child was then taken to another hospital, where it was said he was expected to survive.
Some good news to brighten your day. What a miracle for this child. Our first responders and medical personnel are heroes. Also, a reminder to watch all young children around water! https://t.co/AsROqpIPjM
— Rep Andy Biggs (@RepAndyBiggsAZ) March 3, 2026
What’s not clear is whether the child was taken to the morgue between the time he was declared dead and he began showing signs of life.
KTVK subsequently asked Dr. Frank LoVecchio, an emergency medicine physician with decades of experience, whether he’d ever heard of an extraordinary case like this before.
“Somewhat hard to believe as a physician,” he replied. “It’s hard to believe that they were pronounced dead and then sent to the morgue, and hours later, they awoke. Maybe — never say never in medicine, never say never, and never say always, right? Absolutely a miracle.”
LoVecchio does have a theory of sorts on how it happened, though. He thinks that maybe the child was so cold from the water that it made it almost impossible to detect his ultra-faint pulse.
But even this theory fails to pass muster.
“If you’re overly sensitive, it’s when you’re pronouncing a child dead,” he said. “You want to be absolutely sure — make sure the temperature was adequate, that there is no heartbeat, no movement, no blood pressure.”
“So, I think something’s missing from the story,” he added.
While rare, stories like this aren’t unique. Something similar happened in the California town of Lodi just three years ago:
(Video Credit: CBS News Sacramento)
Pablo Lorenzi and his wife, Magali, allowed their oldest, a 12-year-old, to take their toddler, Sofia, out to play. But when they went to check on the kids, they didn’t see Sofia anywhere.
“The family searched the entire property, and Lorenzi believes the gate to the pool must have been left open, because 19-month-old Sofia was found underwater in the hot tub,” according to the Lodi News-Sentinel. “He thinks she was there for about 15 minutes. Lorenzi pulled Sofia from the water and began screaming for help.”
“His wife called 9-1-1, and he began CPR while the paramedics were en route. Sofia was given four shots of epinephrine at the house and another 15 when she arrived at Adventist Health Lodi Memorial. Lorenzi said Sofia endured about 100 minutes of CPR before doctors said there was nothing more they could do,” the outlet reported.
“Lodi Memorial worked really hard with Sofia,” Lorenzi recalled. “They did everything they could to bring her back. They were in constant contact with UC Davis for tips because she wasn’t coming back.”
At 5:47 pm that evening, his daughter was declared dead.
“We just kept hugging her, praying, asking the Lord for mercy to bring her back,” Lorenzi said. “And then 18 minutes later, a nurse came back in the room with chairs, and she gets near Sofia, and saw that her chest was moving. Everyone came back in, and doctors hooked her back up to the machines.”
Dr. April Edwell, who treated Sofia, later wrote her a letter for the future.
“When I reached out to touch your leg and begin my exam, you moved your legs and your eyes,” Edwell wrote. “I was shocked. I was so worried you wouldn’t be able to do any of it. And there you were, wiggling under the blanket. Blinking your eyes. We got an MRI, and it was the same. I expected only devastation and ruin, and that’s not what we saw.”
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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