A 15-month-old female, Paolo Barroso, drowned inside a five gallon bucket of soapy water Tuesday night, Sgt. Daniel Grubbs with the Fort Smith Police Department said.
“We heard the ambulance and you know we came outside to see what was going on,” said Mischa Deering, a neighbor.
In the investigation, police found that the toddler’s parents, Elvira Manjarrez and Francisco Barroso, were visiting relatives at a home at 1418 Dallas Street receiving haircuts. An eyewitness told investigators they found the girl “stuck upside down” in the bucket, according to a police report.
“Just within a matter of minutes they began looking for this young victim and they went looking and found her in a back room suspended over the edge of the bucket,” said Sgt. Grubbs.
The child was unresponsive and the family conducted CPR until first responders arrived.
Sgt. Grubbs said officers found two small toys inside the bucket of water where the child was found. The bucket had 3.5 inches of water in it, according to a police report.
“Sometimes it only takes a couple minutes for a tragic accident to happen,” said Sgt. Grubbs.
At this time, no foul play is suspected. Detectives are continuing to investigate, and are now treating this as a tragic accident.
