Aunt revives 3-year-old found sinking in neighborhood pool

MARICOPA, AZ - A 3-year-old Maricopa girl is out of the hospital after nearly drowning in her community pool.

On Saturday afternoon, an older cousin found Ariza Valenzuela unconscious and sinking, according to relatives.

Ariza’s aunt, Lorena, began CPR hoping to revive the child who investigators believe could have been underwater anywhere from three to 10 minutes.

Lorena said Ariza’s father had left a few minutes earlier to pick up a pizza for the family and she assumed Ariza went with him.

“I thought my brother had taken her with him,” Lorena told ABC15. “She was lifeless, she was blue, she wasn’t responding.”

Lorena then resuscitated the child who started to vomit and breathe normally.

Ariza was released from the hospital Sunday and is absolutely fine, said Lorena.

“God has truly blessed us,” Lorena said. “She’s our miracle.”