An Arizona toddler was declared dead after being pulled from his family’s backyard swimming pool — only to be discovered alive more than five hours later inside a freezing morgue.
Disturbing 911 recordings reveal the panic that unfolded after 18-month-old Vincent Lorenzo Fiordilino was found floating face-down in the pool at his family’s Gilbert home on February 8.
The boy’s mother, father and other relatives had reportedly been watching Super Bowl LX when they suddenly realized Vincent was missing, according to a police report.
Police allege the toddler’s parents, Alexus and Angelo Fiordilino, had been smoking marijuana in the garage when Vincent somehow gained access to the pool.
He was discovered in the water at around 5:30 p.m.
Alexus, 29, pulled her son from the pool and immediately began performing CPR as relatives frantically called 911. The toddler was reportedly vomiting foam after being brought out of the water.
“I just found my nephew in the pool,” one panicked family member told an emergency dispatcher, according to audio obtained by the New York Post.
When asked whether Vincent was breathing, the caller replied, “We’re not sure.”
A second call was placed from the same home only seconds later. Multiple people could be heard screaming in the background as the dispatcher attempted to understand what was happening.
“I’m calling, I’m calling,” a woman shouted. “I need an ambulance.”
After confirming the address, the caller said, “My nephew, my nephew was in a fall in the pool.”
The family said they did not know how long Vincent had been underwater. As relatives continued performing CPR, the dispatcher asked questions about the toddler’s weight and whether emergency crews needed a gate code to enter the property.
At one point, Vincent’s aunt could be heard saying the boy was “starting to respond.”
The first 911 call lasted five minutes and 51 seconds, ending as police arrived at the home. The second call lasted approximately four minutes.
Vincent was rushed to Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, where Dr. Aryan Toosi pronounced him dead at 6:20 p.m.
His body was then taken to the hospital morgue.
But approximately five and a half hours later, a medical examiner arrived to collect the toddler’s body and made a stunning discovery.
Vincent was still alive.
A faint heartbeat was detected, and the child was quickly airlifted to Phoenix Children’s Hospital for emergency treatment.
An initial MRI reportedly showed what doctors feared was extensive brain damage. His organs were also struggling after the prolonged ordeal.
Police investigators now believe a serious medical “error” may have been made when Vincent was declared dead.
According to the police report, Vincent had shown several possible signs of life before Dr. Toosi ordered medical workers to stop attempting to revive him.
One police officer said he heard a nurse announce, “I have a pulse,” before several hospital staff members began trying to resuscitate the toddler.
The officer entered another room, where Dr. Toosi was speaking with Vincent’s devastated parents, and told the physician what the nurse had said.
The doctor allegedly did not take the officer’s concerns well.
“[The doctor] arrogantly told me he was the doctor, he has the medical degree, he went to medical school for a reason, and to let him do his thing,” the officer wrote in the report.
Dr. Toosi then returned to the emergency room and allegedly instructed medical staff to stop their lifesaving efforts. Vincent was officially pronounced dead soon afterward.
As Alexus and Angelo said what they believed would be their final goodbyes to their son, both parents reportedly insisted Vincent still appeared to be breathing.
According to police, the parents believed they saw the toddler gasping for air. The officer also said he observed Vincent’s “stomach/chest area rising and falling.”
Hospital workers allegedly explained that what they were witnessing was simply gas escaping from the body.
But the apparent signs of life did not stop.
Later that evening, as staff prepared to move Vincent from the morgue, a female officer reported hearing “another audible gasp” coming from the toddler.
“I again observed what appeared to be a gasp or air release, which was now almost an hour later,” the officer recalled after entering the morgue.
Vincent was finally found to have a faint heartbeat more than five hours after he had been declared dead.
His family later revealed through a GoFundMe page that doctors at Phoenix Children’s Hospital initially gave them a grim prognosis.
Vincent’s kidneys, lungs and liver were “all struggling,” and his organs appeared to be failing.
The first MRI reportedly showed two “pencil-dot areas of potential brain damage,” leaving doctors deeply concerned about the toddler’s future.
However, a second MRI performed on February 12 delivered what the family called a miracle.
“By the grace of God, the results showed no brain damage,” the family wrote.
Doctors found only a small area of bruising, which they believe could cause minor balance problems. Because Vincent is so young, physicians reportedly expect his developing brain will be able to compensate as he grows.
“Despite this miracle, Vincent still faces a long and challenging recovery,” the family said. “He will need extensive therapy, ongoing medical monitoring, and support for his healing organs.”
Both Alexus and Angelo underwent blood testing at the hospital after the pool incident. Police said both parents tested positive for THC.
Officers who responded to the family’s home also reported detecting a “strong odor” of marijuana coming from the garage.
The Gilbert Police Department is now recommending that the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office pursue one felony count of child abuse in connection with the near-drowning.
