What was nearly a tragedy turned into a powerful reminder of the Hashgacha Pratis that accompanies each Yid, wherever they may be—even in a Florida resort, on a sunny Chol Hamoed afternoon.

Just 24 hours after pulling their unconscious two-year-old daughter from the water, the Cohen family of Baltimore gathered friends, family, and first responders for an emotional and deeply moving Seudas Hodaah. Their little girl, Aliza Rivka bas Chana, had been miraculously revived after a harrowing near-drowning accident—thanks to the quick actions of bystanders and the heroic intervention of Hatzalah of South Florida.

The father, Levi Cohen, stood before the crowd, his voice thick with emotion. “You read about these kinds of stories on Yeshiva World News,” he said. “But not on your own WhatsApp chat. There are people in this room who literally saved a life 24 hours ago.”

The story began with a moment every parent dreads. “Everything happened so quickly,” Reb Levi recalled. “In a split second, she was in the water. By the time I pulled her out, she wasn’t breathing.”

Running into the house in a panic, he cried out for someone to call Hatzalah. But help had already begun to arrive in a most unexpected way. “A man driving by on a golf cart saw what was happening and jumped off. Like Eliyahu Hanavi, he started CPR right there on the lawn.”

Within 90 seconds, the stranger had revived Aliza Rivka, and moments later, members of Hatzalah and Osceola County EMS were on the scene, taking over with their expertise and speed. The young child began breathing on her own. She was stabilized, airlifted by medevac to a nearby hospital—and, remarkably, was discharged the very next day.

Aliza Rivka’s mother spoke as well, her voice steady but emotional. She described her terror as the helicopter lifted off, with her precious daughter unconscious in the back. She wasn’t even allowed to sit beside her child. “I didn’t know what was happening behind me… but I had one Hatzalah member sitting next to me in the front. He said, ‘If you need anything at all, we’re here.’”

That Hatzalah member had already reached out to a colleague near the hospital to ensure someone would be waiting to assist. “They came like angels,” she said. “Not just to save my daughter’s life, but to carry us through the nightmare.”

Despite the happy conclusion to this harrowing story, Hatzalah stresses that this incident cannot simply be brushed aside as “another close call.”

“This must be a wake-up call,” Hatzalah of South Florida told YWN. “Drowning is among the most terrifying emergencies we respond to. Seconds matter. Supervision is not optional—it’s life and death.”

As Yidden continue to travel during Pesach and in the coming summer months, Hatzalah of South Florida is urging the community to take pool safety seriously. Pools may offer hours of entertainment, but they are also among the most dangerous places for young children.

Key reminders include:

• Never, ever leave a child unattended near a pool. Even for a second.
• Private pools lack the oversight of lifeguards. The responsibility is solely on the adults present.
• Know your address and resort name. Post it prominently in your rental unit, and program local emergency numbers into your phone.
• Pool gates and alarms must never be disabled or bypassed.
• Keep CPR-trained adults nearby whenever children are swimming. Seconds can save lives.

These measures are not theoretical—they are essential. In the words of the father who just watched his daughter’s life hang in the balance, “Don’t take chances. You never think it’s going to be your story—until it is.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)