London Eisenbeis, 10, tragically died from an underlying heart condition as she flew down an 82-metre water slide. Photo / YouTube / Instagram
London Eisenbeis, 10, tragically died from an underlying heart condition as she flew down an 82-metre water slide. Photo / YouTube / Instagram
A heartbroken mother has spoken out after her 10-year-old daughter tragically died while going down an 82m waterslide.
In February 2018, London Eisenbeis was living her dream of being able to go down a large waterslide, something she hadn't previously been allowed to do due to her height.
But halfway down tragedy struck when the 10-year-old's "excitement" got the better of her, throwing her heart into an abnormal rhythm and sending her into cardiac arrest.
"The slide she went down on has a heartbeat sound at the top that my husband said made it even scarier," London's mother Tina told The Sun.
"Who would have ever thought she would come out the bottom without one?"
"We're going to get some footage of our water slides, so stay tuned for more videos," she promised.
London stepped into the pink capsule, giving a thumbs up before suffering a cardiac arrest.
At the bottom, lifeguards blew a whistle as they tried to rescue London.
"But within maybe minutes, I started seeing women looking terrified," she said.
"One woman was walking with two children, grabbing them. 'Somebody's drowned over there'. I kind of got nervous.
"Jerry [my husband] was looking down and there were sheets up and I knew it was one of my kids. It was an awful thing. There were no signs of the condition. She just dropped. The day before, she had been doing flips in the air."
"The slide she went down on has a heartbeat sound at the top that my husband said made it even scarier. Who would have ever thought she would come out the bottom without one?"
London was rushed to the hospital where it was discovered she had Long QT syndrome, a heart rhythm disorder that can cause heartbeat palpitations, fainting, drowning, or sudden death.
She was on life support for nine days before the family decided to let her go.
"The one night we both came home - I was just wanting to take a shower and come back - I got a phone call from my dad who was with her. She'd gone into cardiac arrest again," Tina recalled.
"I would have taken her home with the brain damage but I'm glad she made that choice for us.
"She fought for nine days in the hospital, then she gained her angel wings."
A year on, and Tina's pain is still raw, with the mother crying herself to sleep some nights.
But she's used her daughter's loss to help others, training to become an instructor for the American Heart Association.
Tina has since launched a foundation to help grant defibrillators to local communities.
No defibrillators were used during London's cardiac arrest at the water park. That's something Tina wants to change.
"You have to respond, you don't have time to wait. I think people are afraid of defibrillators, but they're very easy to use. They're what is needed to bring back the rhythm."
