A British toddler, identified as Matilda, tragically passed away after spending 12 days in the hospital following an incident where she fell into a hotel swimming pool in Lardos, a coastal village on the island of Rhodes in Greece. The three-year-old girl was on vacation with her family when the accident occurred on October 14. Matilda was airlifted back to England after receiving critical care in hospitals in Rhodes and Crete but sadly did not survive.
The child was discovered unconscious at the bottom of the pool in a hotel complex after her 44-year-old uncle, who was responsible for supervising her, reportedly left her unattended for approximately 10 minutes. A British doctor present at the scene administered CPR until emergency medical services arrived. Matilda was initially treated at the General Hospital of Rhodes before being transferred to Crete and eventually repatriated to the UK.
Following the incident, the child’s uncle and a 54-year-old travel agency manager responsible for the hotel’s guests were arrested by the authorities. They, along with the 57-year-old hotel owner and the hotel’s director, are now facing charges related to the tragic event. An investigation revealed that the hotel lacked adequate safety measures, such as the absence of a lifeguard, rescue equipment at the pool, and a designated supervisor on duty.
The uncle’s legal representative, Antonis Zervos, has maintained that his client was not in close proximity to the child at the time of the incident. Conversely, the hotel manager’s lawyer argued that the pool did not legally require a lifeguard due to its size. Law enforcement officials are examining CCTV footage to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the accident, and their investigation remains ongoing.
During Matilda’s hospitalization, medical professionals informed the family that her brain injury was irreversible, with the hospital director describing her condition as “brain dead” due to prolonged submersion in the pool. Despite efforts by bystanders to rescue her, including a woman who spotted and pulled her from the water, the child did not show signs of improvement.
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