American Girl Found Dead in Hotel Pool... Family Files Lawsuit Against Hotel

Disappeared During Family Pool Play
Found Dead Inside 40cm Diameter Pipe

An 8-year-old girl drowned after being sucked into a pool pipe at a hotel swimming pool in Texas, USA. On the 27th (local time), foreign media including The Washington Post reported that Aliya, the 8-year-old girl, was found dead inside a 40 cm-wide pool pipe six hours after she went missing on the 23rd.

On that day, Aliya was enjoying playing in the water with her family at the hotel pool. Suddenly, Aliya disappeared, and her family immediately began searching for her, but despite a considerable amount of time passing, they could not find her. The family then reported to the police, who promptly launched an investigation.

The police who responded at the time confirmed from the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage they obtained that the girl entered the water and did not come out.
[Photo by JTBC News]

The police who arrived at the scene obtained CCTV footage showing Aliya entering the water but not coming out. After thoroughly searching the pool area, Aliya was found inside a 40 cm-wide pool pipe. The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences identified the cause of death as asphyxiation or drowning due to physical force. The family’s attorney stated, "Aliya’s small body was twisted as she was sucked 6 meters into the pipe. Her 5-year-old sibling could also have been sucked into this pipe and drowned."

Aliya’s family has filed a lawsuit against the hotel and its parent company, demanding $1 million (approximately 1.35 billion KRW) in damages. Aliya’s mother, Daniela, claimed that the hotel’s lukewarm response delayed the rescue. Daniela stated that Aliya disappeared around 4:50 PM, and at about 5:20 PM, she requested to see the CCTV footage from the hotel, but was denied access on the grounds that "the police must be present to view the footage."

Daniela also appealed that the incident was caused by a malfunction in the hotel pool’s water management system. According to an inspection conducted by the Houston Health Department on the 26th, the pipe cover at the accident pool was missing, and it was found that no inspection had been conducted after remodeling. The police are currently investigating the exact circumstances of the drowning accident.