There is absolutely NO excuse for a child drowning, EVER. What a shame.

Such a tragedy. Condolences to the family.

This story is so tragic -- my heart goes out to Jaziyah, her family, and her friends.

They "thought" a 5 year old went to the restroom?? My condolences to the family.

My condolences to the family. Please don't judge these people too harshly -- it only takes a moment to turn your head and a child to take off. They have this to live with for the rest of their lives.

they "thought" she went to the restroom? since when is a five year old girl old enough to go to the restroom by herself-especially in a public park.so much for that excuse. why can't they just admit they weren't waching her? i feel so bad for that poor,little girl. just a sickening story...

my sentiments exactly out of the box. it only takes a minute. my prayers go out to all of the family of this little girl. losing a child is just a tragedy in itself. no need to play the blame game. this couple will have a long road ahead of them. it is an accident. my prayers to the family god bless you.

This is a sad story. I know one of the people who tried to revive this girl and it was obviously traumatic to that person seeing what they saw.

Please don't post about the adults she was with ... as a parent, I know how it's so easy to lose sight of your children at public places regardless how well you watch them. You think of safety in numbers, but it only takes a few brief seconds for a tragedy like this to happen. Water is a powerful force for people of any age.

This is an awful accident, nothing more, nothing less. Prayers should go out to the girl's family.

@ "Out of the box" and "SazzyGirl"...I concur with both of you...people are so quick to judge others.
This couple made a mistake that will eat at them internally for the rest of their lives. I'm sure if they had it to do all over again...they would watch Jaziyah more carefully. Very unfortunate and sad story! My heartfelt prayers go out to this family.

@ koalas67...couple of things...First..QUIT being judgemental...this was an unfortunate accident!
Second...re-read the story...Jaziyah was NOT this couple's kid...she was their cousin...not only are you judgemental BUT you obviously can't read!

Again, my prayers are with this family.

Heartbreaking. So heartbreaking.

As with any location, especially around water, keep an eye on those kids!

Heartbreaking. So heartbreaking.

As with any location, especially around water, keep an eye on those kids!

the fast one, i agree with you myself being a parent know how easy it is to lose sight of a child. people need to understand this is a tragedy. an accident. it could happen to any of us. even the most cautious of parents.

@koalas67 - This was not her parents that were at the park. If you read the article you would see that she was there with her cousin and his wife. Don't judge the parents for the mistake of a relative who should have been old enough to know better.
However, I was at a park with my child when she was around that age. We were sitting about half way between the lake and the playground. She asked if she could go to the playground with her cousin. I walked up with them and when I saw how much fun they were having I went and sat down. They were still within my view. Within 2 minutes I realized they were no longer on the playground and immediately started scanning everything in site. I spotted them in the water playing. They were fine, but I was not. Our day at the park ended early, because they had been told in no uncertain terms that they were never to enter the water without our knowledge and they had left the playground without checking with me.
Things happen that shouldn't all the time. That does not mean she was not being watched.

As a parent, I really feel so bad for this family. I can not imagine the pain that they are feeling. Personaly I feel that they do not have enough life guards, maybe for a pool it is enough, but not a lake that you can not see your own child when they go under the water more than a couple of inches. I have always felt that they should have a life guard on each dock as well as on the beach. How are they going to get all the way out to the second dock in enough time to save someone from the beach? It would be better to pay a few more guards a couple of bucks than to take the chance of someone else drowning. Loyal Oak is a nice, fun, clean place that is managed well, but, unfortunately, this should be a real wake up call for the park to re-evaluate its policies and procedures.

koalas67......hey how about you read the story before you make a stupid comment!!! Can you read???
This was not their child.

http://www.ohio.com/news/break_news/49468182.html

Follow above link to read about a drive by shooting with 5 shot in Akron. The ABJ buried this story in less than three hours last night. Should be on the front page. Or type "drive by" in the ABJ search box.

Just a tip to parents: Go to Wal-Mart and buy a buckle life jacket for your children. It will only cost about $30 and can save a child's life. Children should never be allowed near water without one on.

I agree with theFastOne. I don't think there's a parent alive that hasn't felt the panic of not being able to find their child, even if it was just for a second. Although the people at the park with Jaziyah weren't the little girls parents I'm sure they never intended to take her out for a day of fun and have it result in such tragedy. May God help all those touched by this tragic event.

Thank you Sir for your comments, I completely agree. My deepest condolences to this family, I can't even begin to imagine the grief they are going through.

TRUTH YOU COULDNT HAVE SAID IT ANY BETTER

So many of you are so quick to judge others. Being a Mother, it takes a moment a single second for a child to wander away from you. This little girl's Aunt & Uncle have to live with this for ever, they certainly don't need judgement from any of you.

Peace to the family.

people might think i'm crazy, but that's why i nver trust anyone to watch my kids. yeah, i don't get a break that often, but at least i know they are safe. i know the people watching her didn't intend to be negligent, but that's whats so tiring about watching children-you have to watch them every second and forget about you own enjoyment at that time.it's just horrible all around for this family.

What a terrible tragedy. My prayers are with this family.

What a editied version of the truth! it was loyal oaks policy to do a land search before they created panic in the water for a water search. the girl was missing 30-45 minutes before they even did a water break and then it was another 5-10 minutes till they searched the water. but im sure that was all edited for legal purposes on the parks end!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let me break this down for you people...

Raking a lake for a kid is an image that you will NEVER get out of your head, I assure you.

Several years ago, some of you may remember when a little girl drowned at Clay's Park while on a trip with her daycare. A human chain was formed, and they pulled her out of 5-foot-deep water, almost identical to the tragedy at LLLP. I was there. I saw it, and I've NEVER forgotten.

The park is not at fault... It's a big lake, and accidents happen... and if the group she was with didn't see her go into the water, it's entirely possible that the lifeguard(s) did not, either...

I will go so far as to say that her cousins, whom she was with, were also not at fault. Kids are constantly running around that place... to the snack bar, to the restroom, and all over the beach. Though I may not agree with the cousins' course of action, the fact that she "ran off by herself" isn't a forlorn concept, especially if she was a swimmer, and especially given that she was in what is considered shallow water...

If anyone is to blame, it's the idea of "institutional swimming trips." For anyone under the age of like 8, the adult to child ratio for ANY field trip should be at a MINIMUM one adult for every two children, one for each eye. Similar to the drowning at Clay's several years back (a daycare), you cannot bring a bus full of kids into a park with a few adult chaperones and not feel as if you are setting yourselves up for failure... because, as we saw here, even with two caretakers, this innocent life was taken...

One more thing...

Koalas67... "They sound stupid." Are you kidding me? Thanks for your opinion... that and 25 cents will buy you a cup of coffee at Sheetz. How ignorant...

RIP Jaziyah. Parents/cousins/babysitters/etc...: NEVER take your eyes off of the young children you are supposed to be watching. It is that simple.

I totally agree w/ Nittany Lion!! As a mother of 2 small children I couldn't even imagine witnessing what you did!! Rest in peace little Jaziyah....

well put Nittany LIon...tragic

@chippy... I totally agree. You NEVER let a little kid out of your site. Sure accidents happen but some should never happen in the first place. My grandkids who range from 4yrs down. When we have them, they are NEVER out of our site. Because they are kids, they don't know better but we do. My G-daughter likes to swim in our pool. I have already started to try and teach her basic swimming. A child is not even alound in out back yard with out adult supervision at all times.

Please, those of you who are judging so harshly. But for the grace of God, this story could be about you or your child or grandchild. Things can happen in a nono second with little children. This is a tragedy and will devastate many lives. Instead of judging, get on your knees for these people.

wingar, sometimes little kids get out of your sight even for a minute it happens. i only let two people watch my little one my second oldest son and my mother and beleive it or not he is one slick little boy. although i do have to say my child always has life jacket on when he is near or around water.

My thoughts and prayers go out to family, and friends of this little girl, and also to the other visitors at the the lake that day. It must have been traumatic for all involved.

@I Grandma "this story could be about you or your child or grandchild" That's why I am so bent on watching who ever I'm watching. You didn't read that I was judging them. They are now going to remember this for the rest of their lives. They don't need anyone telling them about what went wrong. I just gave an example on how (I)
watch all kids.
@SAZZYGIRL Your right, lil kids do get out of your sight for a minute. My grandson who ia almost 1,
as soon as he walks into another room, no adult in there, I'm right behind him watching him.
My daughter thinks I'm over protective but she made it to her age with my over protection!

The longer you continue to be PC and not put blame on an adult(s) for an innocent child dying, the number of innocent children that drown each year will continue to rise. This story reminds me what I am responsible for when my children are with me (which is why it is news). To say that a "child will get away from you" is a pure cop out. To make such a statement simply means you were having "your" fun while you forgot the most important role "you" were supposed to play.

To Italian Gma...yes, it could be about my child but if it was, it would still be MY fault for not watching MY child.

5 folks; not 16 or 21 driving around in a car where you have little control, but 5. The child was 5.

BUICK CONVERTIBLE- IT HAPPENS SOMEITMES IT HAPPENS KIDS ARE VERY CURIOUS AND IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE WILL GO OFF ON THEIR OWN. IT HAPPENS.

prayers go out to the family this is my family by marriage but i will say they are devestated they had custody of the little girl and she has been with them for over a year now, they are both sick they are not doing good at all keep them all in your prayers.as to respect everyone involved im not gonna share any information but i will say pointing blame wont help, just pray thats what they need is support prayer and peace of mind. rip baby girl.

The Taylors told the detective they were playing with the girl on the beach when she wandered off behind them.


My prayers are with this family.

One more time please? IT HAPPENS

That post was meant for sazzygirl.

@ Buick Converitble - you are totally correct in that the child should be watched at all times and it is ultimately the responsibility of the adult in charge.

At the same time, and from a practical perspective, it's not easy to follow a little person 100% of the time in a public place.

I was in a public setting once with my two kids ... went through the turnstile ... I watched while both of my kids walked through the turnstile directly behind me ... I walked no more than 10-15 feet to gather my belongings, looked up and the 7 year-old had wandered off ... I had to chase down security to put word out to the police who eventually found the child 10 minutes later at a concession stand.

As a caregiver, if you're outnumbered (i.e. more little people than adults) you simply can't keep visual contact with all of them at all times. You just can't ... to coin a sports phrase - you're playing zone defense.

My condolences to her family. This is a sad story.
Kids are kids and do run off in the blink of any eye. Im sure the family will have the rest of there lives to think about the ( woulda or shoulda ) that they could have done. Hope they can hold it together.

Prayers to the family of the little girl.

From the story it sounds as if they were watching the little girl- no body ever expects a drowning to occur. Of course mistakes happen, you can not always keep an eye on young ones. Our minds wander very easily, other events catch our attention, or other people may inhibit our concentration. You are right, things like this do happen, and it happens often, and usually without such a detrimental event happening. Do not count yourself out of this occuring if you have children or have watched them. Fact is, it could have been you who lost track of your child, just not at a lake, or around water. Danger is everywhere. Do not judge these people for making a mistake that they will forever hold themselves accountable for.

I was a lifeguard for 6 years- a lifeguard instructor, in fact. I have dealt with many good guards and have caught even the best with a wandering mind at least once. I understand that we are flawed, we do not have perfect surveilance. Having said that, I have been to this lake, and have watched the guards at their posts, in the chairs, doing their secondary duties, and switching the primary guard in the chair. These guards do not take their job seriously with as many objects in the water that inhibit visibility, the fact it is a lake and you can not see the bottom, there are diving boards, and it is a large area of coverage. I believe there needs to be more guards on duty, in chairs with smaller coverage zones. They do not do the proper surveilance while they are in the chairs. These guards need to be trained much more thoroughly. Yes, accidents can happen, but from the many times I have visited the lake, the guard staff was asking for this type of situation. Lakes are not easy to guard. Precaution needs to be taken.

I am sorry to hear that it had to happen, now the proper training needs to be put into action to save it from happening to another poor child, adult, and family.

So sad. You literally cannot take your eyes away for a second when children are in or near the water. I hope that others can learn from this tragedy. My prayers go out to the family.

It only takes one minute for a child to be out of your sight and drown. Literally a minute. I know first hand, when my son at 3 old did the very same thing. Fortunately, he was revived very quickly, and is 21 years old now. My heart goes out to her family, I can only imagine what you are feeling. My condolences, and God Bless little Jaziyah.

Banana Pancakes...thank you for your input from an experienced life guard instructor...
I take my children there often and have not been very comfortable with the life guard situation. I am not sure what the laws are for lakes etc., and I think that this is a private club so not sure if same laws would apply. Would like to know how to find out. The guards are all young people and one time I saw one male guard looking at his cell phone while on duty.
There is some sort of dye put in the lake and not sure if that makes it easier or harder to see the bottom. I only know that when one of my children swim under the water in the shallow part of the lake...I can not see them. We try to have a parent watching at all times, but one does get distracted by the other siblings, etc at times. Children move quickly and it is possible to loose track in a blink of an eye with all of the other children in there. I feel so sorry for this family. They definately will have unimaginable issues to deal with and I only pray that I never have to experience such a tragedy. May God be with this family.

As difficult or as scary as it may be, the water should be the first place they look - not the last.

At the very least, there should be a water search at the same time as others are doing a land search.

Can't imagine the pain that these people must be in. Prayers to the family and loved ones.

I am soo sorry for the family. What makes this even worst, is reading the mean and rude comments left by people sitting in front of a computer.

@slr,Out of the box and SazzyGirl...although I do agree with mmost of ur comments, what I see is a loving couple who doesn't have kids, try and be responsible for someone they loved but w/o knowing the in's and out's of PARENTHOOD and turned their heads and .....

I am sure the Taylors will remember this the rest of their lives but this is the kind of situation where blame is eventially placed on someone by someone, so as my heart goes out to them, it goes more to the parents who never saw that last smile of Jaziyah's.

I will say a prayer for both sides of the family and I always say when they go this young, God called the best!

May God bless Jaziyah's family.

Never took my eyes off of my kids. Never had any drown.

this is sooo sad.

if it is such a golden rule that you lose your kids 'in the blink of an eye' why lose them near a BODY OF WATER???? !!!!!

I hope the parents sue. and never have children of their own. there were probably twisted off sandwich bag ends near their picnic table.

I agree there should be more lifeguards one on each dock, i grew up going there and know the owners they are good people, and yes all children should have on a life jacket if they have not had swimming lessons my son always has his on while he is around our pool or at the lake. They do not put dye in the lake that is just a stupid assumption it is a LAKE stupid...

i send my prayers to the faimly of this lilttle girl .

I have a five year old and would never let him go to the bathroom by himself! You can never take your eyes off little ones. Around water even more! I feel bad for this family, but too many times I see little ones on their own running around. When you have little ones it is no longer about you and your needs. They are what is important. Yeah it's nice to sit back and relax in the sun, but when you are reponsible for a five year old you don't get to relax. Ask the people around them that day. They will tell you how well the child was being watched. The truth will come out. Prayers to the parents.

Gildee - the article doesn't state that the Taylor's didn't have children. Perhaps they do have children and brought her along to play. Your statement about parenthood is weak at best.

My heart goes out to the Taylors. They will never forget what happened for the rest of their lives and that is punishment enough for such an accident.

It's not hard to lose sight of a child at a public place, especially a 5 year old. You're assuming that she is the only child they had with her. If you have multiple children and are tending to one, another can run off quickly if you turn your head. Or perhaps you begin unpacking a bag to lay out towels and snacks for the kids and you look up and one has wondered off. It's not impossible or uncommon even for the best of parents.

If you're a helicopter parent, wonderful for you. For those of you who are self-righteous about it, your child may not have drowned, but I hardly believe that your child never suffered any bumps, bruises, broken bones, cuts, etc. because you once turned your head. How in the world do you get any cooking and cleaning done when you have to follow your child around all the time to verify their safety? Get real!

I can't imagine being a guard when this happened. they are there for emergencies, to enforce rules, to keep water safe. it is impossible for them to watch every child every minute especially when older kids are always breaking rules and taking the guards attention.
No one should go to a lake or a pool and expect the lifeguards to be responsible for watching their kid.

As I read this my heart went out to the Taylor's. I have 5 children and all knew how to swim by the age of 3. I also taught 14 of my neices and nephews how to swim with the exception of one. He was 5, and was the one that got curious while his mom was on the side of the house pulling weeds and fell into the pool trying to get his toy out. Thank God for their Golden Retriever that barked and barked to get their attention. My nephew was unconcious when they found him but my sister in law was able to give him mouth to mouth, and he spent an evening at Childrens Hospital. It was only a few minutes and if not for the precious pooch my nephew wouldn't be here.
My brother in law was 16 when he drowned in Nimisila in Portage Lakes. He could swim and his parents weren't real concerned when he was in the lake. The lake was full of seaweed and he shouldn't have been swimming in it. They watched as he horrifically cried for help. They were unable to get to him in time and found him just a foot under the water. That's all it takes is for a child to be overly confident and underestimate the water and what it can do. Please believe my heart goes out to this family but I am begging for this to be a wake up for the rest of us... Our children's lives depend on us teaching them. This has happened in my family two time once ending in all of us Thanking God, and the other leaving us asking God why?

kelmac05...before we start calling people stupid...please check all of your facts. What I have stated is not an assumption...I am not here to argue with people, I just had a comment on the story and on the park. There is no need to be so rude. And yes, the people that manage the park are very nice people and do a really good job and I am also aquainted with them.
I have been going there for several years...and it was the mngr. that told me that they put something in the lake that does change the color of the water to help control algea and other stuff. He did not specify what it was, nor did I ask for details. If you were there last year, you would have noticed that the water was more of a blue color...this year it is more of a green color. The lake gets drained down so far in the fall and filled back in the spring. It is a very clean lake.
My real concern, as I stated, is the number of and location of the lifeguards that I feel is inadequate for this lake. I think after this horific incident, that the park should seriously re-evaluate ALL of its policies and procedures to be the best for all guests and members of the park.

This is a tragic story. My thoughts and prayers go to this childs family and friends.

We have been members of Loyal Oak Lake for years. One reason we keep going back is because of the management and staff. The lifeguards are excellent and if you caught one looking at his cell phone I guarantee he did not work there very long. The manager is very strict with the staff because he is aware of the danger. There is always a lifeguard on the docks during the busy weekends in addition to the lifeguards in the chairs. What a tragic accident. As soon as the park was notified the child was missing a search was done in the water. The park can not be held accountable for the time that passed before they were notified.

First of all my heart goes out to the family of this little girl....Second, My family and I are out at this lake EVERY weekend! I will never expect the lifegaurds to be babysitters! It is solely my responsibility as a mother and adult to keep an eye on my children. There are too many teenagers causing trouble out on the docks for them to keep an eye on everyone all the time! Also the park manager did an excellent job of initiating a search as soon as he was made aware that she was missing. Instead of spending time looking for her on the playground and back at the campsites, they should have alerted the staff so that they could have searched the water sooner!!!

Cooking in the home cannot be compared to forgetting to watch the child in a park with many people. Apples and oranges. If you aren't a helicopter parent in a park then this is what can happen. Hard for them to drown on their own when they are attached to your hip.

If you want to take chances with your children...then get ready to be heckled if this happens to you. Get real.

I might be a "helicopter" parent. It's my job. At home they have a safe,controlled enviroment where i can get things done, but at a park where there is water they do not get away. These people
"assumed" the little one went to the bathroom. Which leads me to believe they felt it was "OK" for a five year old to go off by themselves. This is different from just turning your head and the kid is gone. I know if they could go back in time they would change how well they watched this child. Let this be a warning to parents/sitters who take the relaxed approach to watching kids. There is nothing like constant supervision.

ok...maybe this will sound stupid...but what is a 'helicopter' parent?

A parent that "hovers" over their child. I'm a proud H-parent when I am with my children in public.

note to all: there was one life gaurd on duty that day in that long stretch of water and she was spending most of her time reading a book not watching the water!!!!!!

Well then she should be fired. But she still isn't the babysitter for the 5 year old. I can't believe any of you would be dumb enough to trust a highschooler you probably don't even know the name of to protect your child just so you can relieve yourself of your parental duties.

OMG that poor Family my heart goes out to you.

I grew up at Loyal Oak Lake Park we camped there all summer since 1970's - 1990's and know Dan and his Family my Heart goes out to you too I know how heart breaking this is. The park is a great place for families and it is very easy for a small child to blend in to the crowd in a very quick second. And the park would do everything to help find a missing child if you are there and God hopes your family memebr dosen't come up missing go to the Lifegrauds, Snack bar, gatehouse they will help you found your love Gods bless everyone that was touch by this heartbreaking story and Dan and the Famliy of this poor baby are in my parys.