Storm Drain Fixed After Child Falls in at Via Del Rey

While parallel-parked at about 1560 Via Del Rey just east of  Thursday, Kim Carlson's 4-year-old son slipped getting out of the car and fell into the storm drain. 

"When he fell down, I couldn't see him," Carlson said of the incident that had her son "scared to death." "When he stood up, I saw his arms over his head and his little finger tips through the grate."

At the time of her son's fall, Carlson had her baby in arms, so another nearby parent quickly came to help. Luckily, the other woman was able to put her head and shoulders in the basin and pull out the 4-year-old. He was lucky that he didn't hit his head or chin on the way down, said Carlson of her son's fall. 

Besides the leaves and mud covering her son's body, he was not injured, said Carlson. She immediately called the city's public works department to investigate the basin. 

"The gutter in this location is somewhat depressed, which created a larger than normal opening between the bottom of the bar." said Deputy Public Works Director Shin Furukawa Tuesday. "Our crews have installed a second protection bar, which will prevent the problem from reoccurring."

Catch basins are constructed according to the American Public Works Association or L.A. County standards, depending on who owns it, said Furukawa. While he's heard of objects falling into these drains—never a child. 

"I have never heard of this happening before, although we’ve gotten calls in the past about people accidentally dropping keys or other objects into a catch basin," said Furukawa.

"I feel so lucky to live in a great city," said Carlson, who was delighted with the quick fix. 

If a similar situation arises, Furukawa advises residents to contact the public works dispatcher at (626) 403-7370.