Bleckley Coroner raises awareness about life-vest safety after “freak tragic accident” leaves 3-year-old dead

A 3-year-old boy drowned in a pool last week after his life-vest submerged him underwater for several minutes. Bleckley County Coroner Michael Francis said that he hopes this situation brings attention to life-vest safety.

“Together, we can possibly save more lives through this tragic event,” said Francis. According to him, James Joseph Farland, Jr. was playing in a residential pool with his foster sister when the situation unfolded. 

On paper, it looked like whoever was in charge of looking after Farland did everything right. He was wearing a U.S. Coast Guard approved safety vest, and it was fastened properly. 

According to Francis, Farland’s chest was 22 inches in diameter, and the life vest was only slightly larger at 24 inches.

The problem, said Francis, occurred when the vest began riding up Farland’s body. The vest, though it was a coast guard approved vest in an appropriate size, didn’t have a fastener at the bottom that would prevent it from riding up a small body. At some point, the vest rose higher than Farland’s nose and mouth, and he began to drown. 

Francis said that the length from Farland’s heel to eye was 34 inches. The pool was 36 inches deep.

Eventually someone called 911, and within two minutes of being paged, first responders were on the scene doing chest compressions. Once EMS arrived, he was transported to Bleckley Memorial Hospital where he later was pronounced dead.

“I can promise you the hospital and us, we tried everything to make this little boy live,” he said.

Francis spoke about the occurrence at a Bleckley County Commissioner meeting last Thursday, where he said he wanted to correct some misconceptions spread about his death online. 

“The little boy did have a life vest on,” Francis said. “It was secured properly. It did not have the strap to keep the vest from riding up.” 

He continued, sharing new information about the case not previously released online, including the individuals looking after Farland at the time of his drowning. 

At the time of his death, Farland was living with a foster family with multiple other children. While in the pool, his teenage foster sister was in charge of watching him.

According to Francis, the young girl noticed Farland bobbing in the water as he drowned, but didn’t react because she thought he was only playing in the water. He further explained that the teenager, like other children in the home, was special needs. Francis said that even though the girl was 14-years-old, she had the mental capacity of a seven or eight year old. 

After his death, Farland’s biological mother Tina Farland took to social media, publicly calling out the Division of Child Support Services and calling for the foster parents to face criminal charges.

“This was not [an] accident at all,” Farland wrote on Facebook. 

She later posted, “Justice will be served for my son.”

Officials with the Bleckley County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that an investigation into Farland’s death is still ongoing, but for now, it’s still being treated as an accident.

According to Francis, Bleckley County has about 150-200 deaths per year, with 50-60 being coroner deaths. 

He recalled another drowning from a few years prior, where a Dodge County man drowned after becoming entangled in fishing line inside of a capsized boat. First responders searched for him for several minutes before locating him, but it was too late.

Francis said that modern technology like underwater sonars “help out tremendously” in locating victims during precious moments, but ultimately first responders have a very small window to locate and save people before they will drown. They only have about an hour, which Francis called the “golden hour.”

Over the past week, Farland’s death has garnered a lot of attention online. According to Francis, in the midst of all the chaos, he hopes to spotlight water and life-vest safety.

The U.S. Coast Guard recommends wearing only coast guard approved life jackets and buoyancy aids when out on the water. They recommend checking labels to ensure vests match in user weight and chest sizes.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard’s boating and life jacket safety webpage, “the best lifejacket or buoyancy aid is the one you will wear.”

The page also states that, when worn correctly, life jackets should fit snugly and not rise above the wearer’s chin or ears. Jackets should be tested regularly for buoyancy at least once a year. 

The coast guard also recommends swimmers to always wear life-vests while water skiing, sailboarding, white water boating and while performing other towed activities.