20-month-old declared brain dead after accident in family pool

HEWITT, TX (KXXV) - The 20-month-old who was taken to the hospital after nearly drowning in her family pool on Monday night has been declared brain dead, the family said.

The girl's mother, Sasha McCollum, said doctors will confirm Mira Grace McCollum's condition again on Thursday before the family will remove her from life support.

A funeral is being planned for Mira on Tuesday. Sasha says it will be open to the public.

A GoFundMe has been set up for the McCollum family.

Hewitt Police Chief Jim Devlin said that Mira was outside playing outside with her siblings when she walked straight into the pool. Her father was inside getting food for the children when the accident happened.

Mira's 7-year-old brother immediately took action to help save her life by swimming towards her and calling for help. The father jumped in the pool, pulled her out and began chest compressions. 

Police received the 911 call at 5:43 p.m. and responded to the 200 block of Hillside Drive.

The toddler was brought to Hillcrest in critical condition but she was later transported to McLane's Children Hospital in Temple.

Hewitt Police Chief Jim Devlin said Mira's current condition is deeply upsetting to the entire department. 

"We were very hopeful that we were going to get a different outcome," Chief Devlin said. "We're kind of heartbroken over this one. This one is tough."

Neighbors don't know much about the McCollums since they said the family moved to the area just two weeks ago, but that didn't stop one neighbor from jumping in to help when he heard the sirens.

"I just went to the door and said 'I'm coming in, I'm a medic' and went in and helped the police officers," said Joshua Holmes, neighbor. 

Holmes said his service in the Marine Corps as a hospital corpsman gave him the skills he needed to assist first responders. He said he performed CPR on Mira until more help arrived.

"It's just what I was trained to do," Holmes said. "It just kicked in and there was no questioning about it, just did what I had to do to help."

Sasha and her family remain at the hospital surrounded by their loved ones as they pray for a miracle to save Mira.

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