Lawyers say 8-year-old's drowning death at hotel pool could have been avoided
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The attorney representing the family of an 8-year-old girl who drowned at a northwest Houston hotel pool says the child's death could have been avoided.
On Saturday, March 23, Aliyah Lynette Jaico was swimming with her family at the lazy river at DoubleTree by Hilton on U.S. 290 when the tragedy unfolded.
What was supposed to be a fun day of swimming together quickly turned into their worst nightmare when the girl seemed to have just disappeared while in the pool. After about an hour of searching, her mother reportedly called the police to report her missing.
Texas EquuSearch was eventually called to use specialized equipment to inspect the pipes. Ultimately, the girl was discovered to have been pulled into a pipe underwater.
According to a lawsuit filed on Monday, the little girl was "violently sucked into a 12- to 16-inch unsecured open gap in the swimming pool flow system."
ORIGINAL REPORT: Child reported missing found dead in NW Houston hotel pool, according to Houston police
"We are seeking justice for Aliyah because this could have been avoidable," the family's attorney, Richard Nava with Nava Law Group, said during a press conference Tuesday. "Everybody knows this could have been avoidable."
Nava said Aliyah's 5-year-old sister and family were there that day, as well as other patrons.
"What we know what happened was, everybody was swimming together. Mom had stepped away for a moment - a brief moment," Nava said, emphasizing that Aliyah's mother did nothing wrong.
Nava claims Aliyah was possibly trying to help her 5-year-old sister, who may have also been drowning by being pulled into the pipe, but he says they're working to confirm that.
It is believed that some parts of the pool system were malfunctioning and that water was being pulled in instead of being pushed out.
"That little 16-inch pipe for that whole body to get in there and go almost 20 feet, there had to be some suction pulling her in there, and she was wedged in there so very, very tight," Tim Miller with Texas EquuSearch said.
It reportedly took the Houston Fire Department and the rest of the team about 13 hours to break through and recover her body.
HFD inspected the pool on Monday, and multiple violations were found.
READ MORE: 8-year-old girl 'violently sucked' into NW Houston hotel pool's unsecured gap, lawsuit reads
"All the evidence is going to point to this hotel (running) an establishment with many violations," Nava said. "The pool was not in working order."
The lawsuit is going after Hilton, the parent company of DoubleTree, and the local operator of the hotel, Unique Crowne Hospitality. They seek at least $1 million in damages on behalf of Aliyah's mother.
In a statement from Hilton Monday night, the company offered condolences to the family and said the property is independently owned and operated.
Nava said a public funeral will be held for Aliyah at Funeraria del Angel for her classmates, friends, and teachers on Thursday. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
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