PROSPER, Texas — A new lawsuit filed in Collin County on Thursday alleges that a 2-year-old girl fell into a 6-to-7-foot-deep drain filled with fecal water at a Prosper daycare and was trapped for nearly an hour.
The incident reportedly occurred on Nov. 1 at Children’s Lighthouse in Prosper, where the girl was playing on the daycare playground. Attorneys Levi McCathern and Ty Sheaks, who represent the girl’s parents, claim the child fell into the drain after encountering its “unsecured” cover.
“This kid may have been submerged up to her neck,” McCathern said. “Luckily, it wasn’t underwater, or we’d be dealing with a fatality here.”
According to Sheaks, the cover of the drain, labeled with a warning that read, “Danger, do not enter, fatal poison gas”—was either flipped over or put back on after the child fell, trapping her underground.
The lawsuit alleges daycare staff did not immediately call 911 or police after noticing the child was missing. She was eventually found nearly an hour later, according to the suit, covered in filth and showing signs of distress.
“She was blue and pale. Peeing out dirty water,” the suit claims.
McCathern criticized the daycare’s handling of the incident, telling WFAA, “Things they did before the incident are atrocious. Things they did after the incident are unforgivable.”
McCathern said the girl’s parents are seeking accountability and answers, alleging the daycare has refused to provide them with surveillance footage of the incident.
“Have the dignity to give the parents video of the child falling into the hole,” McCathern said.
When asked about the claim that it refused to hand over the footage, the daycare provided WFAA with the following statement:
“Regarding the video, Children’s Lighthouse of Prosper is fully cooperating with all relevant authorities and working with its insurance team to ensure that everything is addressed properly. As part of this ongoing process, the Prosper school is following procedural guidelines, which includes handling certain information through their appropriate channels.”
In regard to the alleged incident overall, the daycare sent the following statement:
“At Children’s Lighthouse of Prosper, every child’s safety has been and will always be our top priority. We wholeheartedly understand the concern surrounding this previous event, and we want to reassure our community that the situation that occurred on Friday, November 1st was an isolated incident that we’ve all taken very seriously. Steps were taken to prevent this from happening again, including the immediate installation of a fence around the area.
The incident involved a child who fell into a drain hole. Outside of our knowledge, the cover of the drain hole was left unsecured by a third-party company doing winterization for the splash pad. Once staff realized that the child was unaccounted for, she was found unharmed. Very shortly after she was found, her parents picked her up. She was then taken by her parents for medical attention and was confirmed unharmed.
In addition, the teacher that was responsible for the child’s supervision was terminated that same day. After the incident, we immediately notified state licensing authorities. We’ve also conducted a thorough review of our safety protocols and have cooperated with all local authorities.
Our teachers and staff care deeply for each child under our care, and we are committed to fostering a safe and supportive environment. All Children’s Lighthouse Early Learning Schools are independently owned and operated.
-Children’s Lighthouse of Prosper Management Team”
The daycare sent an amended statement Friday:
At Children’s Lighthouse of Prosper, every child’s safety has been and will always be our top priority. We wholeheartedly understand the concern surrounding this previous event, and we want to reassure our community that the situation that occurred on Friday, November 1st was an isolated incident that we’ve all taken very seriously.
The teacher who was responsible for the child’s supervision was terminated that day for not following the strict safety protocols we have in place.
Outside of our knowledge, the area that has always been secured was left unsecured by a third-party company doing winterization for the splash pad. To add additional safety, a fence was quickly installed around the area.
Once staff realized that the child was unaccounted for, she was found unharmed. Quickly after she was found, the child’s parents arrived and took her to seek medical attention on their own rather than at the school. It was then reported back that she was safe and unharmed.
We immediately notified state licensing authorities and have been fully cooperating with the Prosper Police Department since the event occurred, including sharing all video surveillance.
Our teachers and staff care deeply for each child at our school. We pride ourselves on keeping all our children safe and are relieved that this child was uninjured.
All Children’s Lighthouse Early Learning Schools are independently owned and operated.
-Children’s Lighthouse of Prosper Management Team
Both the Prosper Police Department and the Department of Family and Protective Services have confirmed to WFAA that they are investigating the incident.