6-year-old Adonis Jackson was hospitalized after he nearly drowned during a camp in D.C.
WASHINGTON - A six-year-old boy has been removed from an intubator and is recovering in a pediatric Intensive Care Unit nearly 10 days after nearly drowning during a summer soccer camp, according to an attorney representing the child's family.
What we know:
Adonis Jackson was taken to the hospital after being found at the bottom of a pool on the campus of the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) on July 20.
On Wednesday, family attorney Dominique Calhoun said that Adonis is no longer intubated or sedated, though he remains in the ICU and faces a difficult path forward.
"Day and night, the family is in awe of his courage as he confronts what no six-year-old should ever have to face," Calhoun said. "The toll is evident — he has been experiencing night terrors and episodes of delirium — and the road ahead remains uncertain."
Lifeguards off-duty
The incident occurred while Adonis was attending the Nike Soccer Camp held on UDC’s campus. According to police documents, Adonis was in the pool with 30 other children when the incident took place, and no lifeguard was on duty.
READ MORE | UDC athletics leaders put on leave after near-drowning hospitalizes 6-year-old
Adonis was pulled from the water by the camp's head coach, who immediately began performing CPR.
Calhoun noted that the boy's mother was initially notified of the near-fatal event by a camp counselor who stated that "Adonis had guzzled some water."
The Jackson family is demanding full accountability.
Ongoing investigation
After a preliminary review, multiple members of UDC's athletics and aquatics department have been placed on administrative leave while an investigation remains ongoing.
University leaders announced that Dr. Ruthie Little-Berry, UDC’s chief student development and success officer, will temporarily oversee athletics operations and support student-athletes and staff during the investigation.
US Sports Camps, which advertises the program, released a statement addressing the incident:
"We are aware of the incident at the camp held at the University of the District of Columbia, and our thoughts are with the child and their family. This camp is operated by Four Soccer, an independent camp operator, and we are in contact with them as they and the appropriate authorities review what occurred. We are not able to comment on specifics at this time."
What you can do:
The Jackson family has asked the community to send audio messages to Adonis Jackson with words of encouragement, a favorite memory or a song to prayersforadonis@gmail.com.
"The hardest hours in that room are the quiet ones, after visitors have gone and the monitors are the only sound, when the night terrors come," Calhoun said. "In those hours his family and loved ones holds the phone close to his pillow and plays your messages for him, one after another. He is six years old, and he is tired, and he does not always have words to give back. But no child should have to lie awake in an intensive care unit wondering whether anyone is out there. Every voice we play is proof that he is not alone."
The Source: The information in this report is from Dominique Calhoun, an attorney representing the Jackson family.