HOT TUB HORROR
Our UK staycation turned into nightmare when son, 4, got sucked into a hot tub filter – here’s my warning to all parents
Lucy revealed the moment she knew something was wrong
A MUM says her family's UK staycation turned into a nightmare when her four-year-old son got sucked into a hot tub filter.
Lucy Smith had been looking on as her son Lucas played with his cousins in the tub at a Sheffield hotel - before he started screaming.
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She frantically tried lifting him out of the jacuzzi but quickly realised he was stuck.
The 33-year-old mum and one of her cousins managed to free Lucas after an agonising 15 seconds.
But the youngster was left with huge purple bruises across his bottom, which was bleeding heavily.
Lucy and her husband Jamie rushed Lucas from their hotel in Sheffield to hospital.
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Doctors told the Barnsley family Lucas had been lucky not to suffer internal bowel damage.
Horrified Lucy later found the cap from the hot tub filter had come off - sucking Lucas into it.
She said: "I was just stood at the side watching all the kids play when Lucas suddenly started screaming.
"I knew instantly something was wrong. I could tell something was really hurting him.
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"I went over to him to pick him up and realised I couldn't - the suction was so strong.
"I started screaming and me and my cousin were just pulling at him trying to get him out."
Lucy added: "After 15 seconds, which felt like a lifetime, we finally managed to get him out.
"I pulled his shorts down and expected his bum to be shredded -there was lots of blood coming out.
"We were all shaking. It was terrifying. The suction was the perfect size for his bum."
Deep purple bruising spread across Lucas' bottom as Lucy and Jamie rushed him to Sheffield Children's Hospital A&E.
Lucy said: "The doctor was really shocked how well Lucas was - she was expecting there to be some damage to his bowel.
"While we were gone, the family were all looking at the filter and realised the cap wasn't even in the hot tub, it was on the floor.
"At some point, it had come loose and maybe one of the kids had taken it out, we weren't sure.
"They tried to put the cap back on but all really struggled. They did eventually manage to get it back on.
"When the cap is off, the whole filter is basically exposed. His whole bum went into it and sucked it in."
URGENT WARNING
Lucy is now warning parents to check the cap is on the hot tub filter before letting their kids get in.
The mum said: "I feel really really lucky - it could've been so much worse.
"But as a parent the 'what if' is horrible. It doesn't bear thinking about what could've happened.
"We'd never thought of something like this freak accident happening, it left us all so shaken.
"I would tell other parents to always check where the filter is in the hot tub and make sure the cap is screwed on properly.
"You're talking about people's lives. Lucas kept diving in and putting his head under the water.
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"It could've been fatal. It would've been a different outcome if we weren't there.
"I think designs like that when the cap comes off the filter should be recalled. It's so dangerous."
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