There’s no better way to escape the sky-high temperatures than a day at the beach, but even though the shore can provide some relief, one Massachusetts mother learned it also comes with its own set of unique dangers.
And now she wants to warn others.
Even though the scare happened more than a week ago, Heather Cassini said she’s still “shaking.”
Cassini, 40, was visiting Hampton Beach in New Hampshire on July 4 with her family when all of a sudden her 10-year-old son Declan said he didn’t feel good.
At first Cassini wasn’t concerned. It was hot, and Declan had been playing in the ocean.
“I thought the breakfast was just too much for the waves and he just needed to lay down,” Cassini wrote on a now viral Facebook post. As soon as they started to head back so Declan could lay down, he became “disoriented” and collapsed on a sunbather.
Although he was able to stand back up, but once again stumbled to the ground.
“I’m pregnant and frantically trying to pick him up,” Cassini told Today.com. “He’s going in and out of consciousness and vomiting. And he was so pale.”
A group of women who were seated nearby saw the commotion and immediately jumped into action. Paramedics checked his vitals and worked to keep him conscious and warm.
“God bless all the people around us. There were so many nurses,” she said.
“After what felt like eternity he was up and talking. We waited for him to feel better and got him to the car,” Cassini wrote.
It was determined that Declan had hypothermia from the 52 degree ocean water.
“I had no idea that this could happen,” Cassini said. “You think about sunburns and dehydration and all the things that can happen in the water, but I never considered cold shock.”
Now that Declan has fully recovered, Cassini wants to warn others about the odds of becoming hypothermic during the summer.
“Just a warning to those with kids who feel no cold and love the water. Just because they can handle it doesn’t mean they can handle it.”
I had no idea you could get hypothermia even on a hot summer day! This is such an important message to everyone, not just those with children.