There’s no better way to escape soaring temperatures than a day at the beach. But while the shoreline can bring some relief, a mother from Massachusetts learned that it also has its own dangers.
And now she wants to warn others.
Even though more than a week has passed since the scare, Heather Cassini said she was still „shaking.“
Cassini, 40 years old, was visiting Hampton Beach in New Hampshire with her family on July 4th when her 10-year-old son Declan suddenly said he wasn’t feeling well.
At first, Cassini wasn’t worried. It was hot, and Declan was playing in the sea.
„I thought breakfast was just too hard for the waves and that he just needed to lie down,“ Cassini wrote in a now-viral Facebook post. As soon as they returned for Declan to lie down, he became „disoriented“ and collapsed on a beach chair.
He managed to get up, but stumbled back to the ground again.
„I’m pregnant and desperately trying to get him back,“ Cassini told Today.com. „He keeps passing out and vomiting. And he was so pale.“
A group of women sitting nearby noticed the commotion and immediately sprang into action. Paramedics checked his vital signs and tried to keep him conscious and warm.
„God bless everyone around us. There were so many nurses,“ she said.
„After what felt like an eternity, he was back on his feet and able to talk. We waited for him to feel better and then took him to the car,“ Cassini wrote.
It turns out, it’s just one person versus the ocean.
Declan turned out to be hypothermic due to the cold seawater at 11 degrees Celsius.
„I never thought something like this could happen,“ Cassini said. „You think about sunburn, dehydration, and everything that can happen in the water, but I never thought about the shock from the cold.“
Now that Declan has fully recovered, Cassini wants to warn others about the risk of hypothermia in summer.
„Just a warning to all those with kids who aren’t cold and love the water. Just because they can handle it doesn’t mean they can handle it.
I didn’t know you could get hypothermia on a hot summer day! This is a very important message for everyone, not just those with kids.
Please share.“
