Iowa Pool's Underwater Lights Off When Boys Drowned

Two teenagers who drowned at the Pella (Iowa) Aquatic Center last week were swimming at night in a pool that did not have working underwater lights. The Des Moines Register reports that the lights have been shut off for about four years while city officials pursued a lawsuit against the company they claim improperly installed the fixtures.

Nehmson Sanon, 15, and Gael Paulette (also known as Gael Chrispin), 14, were found at the bottom of the Pella pool's deep end Wednesday night. The Haiti natives had relocated to Kansas City, Mo., after January's earthquake in that country and were visting Iowa for a week-long camp sponsored by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. "If the city knows the lights were not working and they rented it to an organization of kids to swim at night, this does not make sense to me," Jean Pierre, a lay brother at First International Baptist Church who knew both boys, told The Kansas City Star. "We have so many questions."

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