Friend recounts moment when 5-year-old drowned at Royalton Antigua

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Izabela

by Ming

Meet Izabela Nikolovski. God gave Izabela her wings on 12/20/20 at the age of 5. Here is the story of how I met Izabela & her family. Note: Her darling mom who is now family to me, gave me her blessing to speak.

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I met Izabela 12/20/20 on the last day of my stay @royaltonantigua. My friend @loveetamara & I decided to go for one last swim on the beach before our flight. Shortly after our swim we heard screams of anguish & saw people running from the pool area. Unafraid & inquisitive, I walked up to see what transpired. There we saw Izabela, on the ground & unconscious. She had drowned in the jacuzzi & efforts were being made by lifeguards & a nurse (who was a hotel guest) to resuscitate her.

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I grabbed Izabela’s mom who of course was distraught and shaking, to hug/soothe her the best I could. I caressed little Izabela’s feet & watched as she grew bluer in hue every passing minute. I wondered what took the ambulance sooo long & I then wondered if @royaltonantigua had a defibrillator on site or even their own nurse.

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Turns out, there was a defibrillator & there was a nurse, except she was on “lunch break”, she was also the only one with keys to access it. I’m guessing emergencies don’t strike while people eat @royaltonantigua ? Izabela’s mom was ALSO a nurse & she could of used it to help save her child! @royaltonantigua drained that jacuzzi after her passing & filled it back up the next day like NOTHING HAPPENED in the face of this grieving family! Who was also still stuck there because the embassy was closed for the holidays. SICK & DISGUSTING on every level!!! On the very day this child passed, instead of a tribute, they continued to promote this establishment on Instagram for people to come & visit. Not a single flower was offered to this family, not a bear, no memorial with a candle lighting, NOTHING! WHY WERE THERE STILL KIDS IN THE JACUZZI AFTER IZABELA’s DEATH?! Why aren’t there cameras covering this area? Where is the “no kids allowed” sign? Why was there no automated external defibrillator available for use by the lifeguard? It does not require a medical professional for use!!

Izabela and family

Why didn’t y’all help this family get home faster?! What precautions are being taken now to ensure something like this NEVER happens again?! Contrary to all the ERRONEOUS news articles & negative people spewing awful things about these parents. You should know Izabella lived an AMAZING life for 5 years old. They are NOT a German family! They live in Chicago, both of their daughters are US citizens & the parents are from Macedonia. This family traveled together *frequently. Izabela has been hiking at Starved Rock State Park, horseback riding on the beach in Mexico, she’s been to the Dominican Republic etc. She also *knows how to swim!! Izabella can swim perfectly fine in 6 feet deep water. So because of what happened that tragic day, this family ONLY wanted answers & some respect from @royaltonantigua. To be thoroughly helped, to be empathetic towards, cared about & to have their needs met during this tragic encounter on their grounds. We are all humans & this could of happened to ANYONE OF US nobody is invincible!! (P.S. Do not stay at this resort, WORST STAY OF MY LIFE, the are highly understaffed, staff/management were disgustingly rude, there’s mosquito/bug infestations, the food was limited, terrible & served in minuscule portions, we had light issues, a broken safe & our refrigerator was empty.

5-year-old Izabela

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44 COMMENTS

  1. Wow! Wow! Wow!
    This is unacceptable if this is so! Absolutely unacceptable!!!!!
    My deepest condolences to the family!!!!

  2. Typical entitled Caucasian behavior. 🙄
    That baby’s death was tragic and unfortunate. However to tear an entire establishment down due to this is very self righteous. The theme is very apparent. The article wasn’t about the child’s untimely death but for validation.
    Note simple stupid things like mentioning mosquitoes on a tropical island 🤦🏾‍♀️. It is a world wide pandemic you could have stayed home like your government has been pleading with you too.

    • Agree Tia, people always need to find somebody to blame when they are broken hearted. It is a terrible tragedy and nobody is at fault.

    • “Typical entitled Caucasian behavior” – for one the author is black Caribbean, but more importantly what exactly has race got to do with anything!? Unfortunately it is very obvious that Antiguans are some of the most racist people on the planet and you don’t even know it!!

    • This was a very sad comment to read. On some levels I agree with you regarding making it about the child, but in all honestly, I have not heard many good things about the hotel.

      On one hand, the “Caucasians” will scream about the hotel so that others do not fall victims, but if it were a “Black” person, they would ask “Is it because I am black?” Two rights don’t make a right indeed but we should all grieve for the beautiful girl.

    • As a friend of this family, I have read an article about this horrible and tragic event. I have seen many people have complaints about this resort, and how there was no lifeguard on duty, as well as no mention of there not being a lifeguard. Also, you especially do not need to make comments like this. Just let this family grieve. You don’t know this family or everything that happened, so you have no right to say something like this.

  3. Sorry the child passed away. But, where were her parents to watch her? That’s one. Two: there is no embassy on Antigua. Third: the embassy is operated by Americans and 5he United States NOT any Caribbean Island they reside on.
    And you (author or this article and publication) are showing your white privilege! Here in the United States, they do no such things for tourists. Stop projecting on islands !! You are a visitor and need to respect the country you visit!! It is ashame that a child has died .. But where were her parents to watch her?? The island and the hotel aren’t your child care. YOU NEED TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR ACTIONS

    • The author is black Caribbean!! More importantly what exactly has race got to do with anything!? But if you want to raise the subject then sorry to point out but there is actually massive black Antiguan privilege and you don’t even know it! And unfortunately Antiguans seem to be the most racist people I have ever come across – blame all their problems on skin colour. Time you became colour blind and move forward with your life as a human not a colour.

    • You don’t know this family or everything that happened, so you have no right to speak on this. Let her family grieve.

  4. This is sad. But her parents should be arrested and charged for child endangerment. This is negligence on the part of the parents. Jacuzzis are off limits to children. I have never stayed at royalton but it is human adult knowledge that you should never leave a child unsupervised in the presence of water! This article acts to tear down every inch of goodness at that hotel. And that is extremely unfair. Why don’t humans like to take responsibility for their own faults. This is clearly a parental mistake. Yes. There are things that could’ve been done in a more timely fashion. But since I became a parent. I blame us for almost everything. Our children are children. And that’s all they can be until they are grown enough to take care of themselves. In the same breath. I choose not to question the Lord and his plan for this family. This entire ordeal is sad. And no parent should watch their child lay dead and unable to help In any way. But this is real life. And life happens! Stop trying to tear down the hotels reputation. And encourage your friend to be a better mom!

    • “But her parents should be arrested and charged for child endangerment.” Well how very Christian of you, hope Jesus takes similar mercy upon your soul! Well I truly truly hope that you never encounter 1/10 the anguish these people have been through, as you clearly do not have a clue.

      • Technically she is correct. Harsh but correct. If this happened in the US, I would think that they would be questioned by the Police and potentially charged.

    • You disgust me. You don’t know everything that happened, so you have no right to speak on this. Don’t you dare tell someone who knows this mother that she should encourage her to be a better mother. That’s disgusting. She just lost her child. I hope to God she never sees this. Every child goes in a jacuzzi. Leave this family alone.

  5. Typical human beings always looking for someone to blame except ourselves. The child had to have some sort of other medical condition that caused her to drowned. Because it was said she’s an ardent swimmer and could swim perfectly in 6ft of water. Stop bashing the hotel because you’re irresponsible. Rest in paradise sweet angel.

  6. Why her mom wasnt watching her and if she is such a good swimmer, how the hell she drowned? If that was my kids i’d be watching her like a hawk

  8. The unexpected death of anyone, especially a child whether by drowning or vehicular mishap or otherwise is always a tragic experience for ALL.. Ming’s account of little the drowning of the infant was disgusting on many levels. At no point in her rambling finger-pointing account did she even attempt to answer the question that everyone immediately asked. What was the level of supervision arranged by the mother of this five-year-old? Talk is cheap

  9. I’m not WHITE so those comments are beyond STUPID!!!!!! I am Black, Caribbean and that’s the thing, there was no WHITE OR BLACK when I experienced this situation WITH THIS FAMILY and when I stayed by their side!!! For heavens sake their daughter is GONE to no return. They have ALREADY BEEN BEATEN every single day since their daughter has died and outlets posted this story 3 WEEKS AGO with FAULTY information. It does NOT change the fact that there are very much STILL precautions that are meant to be in place ESPECIALLY at a FAMILY resort in the EVENT OF AN **ACCIDENT***. If it was you, your mother’s, daughters, aunty, cousin, grandmother you would want the EXACT SAME. It slipped ENTIRELY OUT of there hands in the aftermath because they do not have the proper precautions! Changes NEED to be made by Royalton Antigua that ensure lifeguards are not ONLY ON THE BEACH far away with their backs turned to the POOLS/JACUZZI’S as they were, more people need access to the defibrillator, more nurses need to be hired in case one is on break, signs that say NO CHILDREN ALLOWED because there were none & more EMPATHY!!!!! This 5 year old girl is GONE, NEVER coming back. My stomach hurts knowing some of you are so dark on the inside. I NEVER been the sheep in a FLOCK. May God rest your precious soul Izabela 💙

    • I would never let my children out of my sight, especially near water as in a moment they can go in the water and drown. There is also the danger of the children disappearing. Where were the parents when this happened? Parents must be responsible. A parent should never experience the tragic death of a child under any circumstances and my heart goes out to them.
      As to Ming, The Author, are you sure you are a Caribbean person? People from warm climates are use to mosquitoes. The largest mosquitoes I have experienced are in North America. So you see, mosquitoes and bugs are everywhere.
      You should ask yourself why parents would allow their children in the jacuzzi after such a horrible incident.
      You seem to have some other motive for writing this letter.

      • Until you walk in that persons shoes. Don’t judge. My son jumped into a pool at the age of 3 with me right there. It takes seconds. Thank The lord I was there to save him

      • Perfectly said Jackie. Ming the author you seem to be seeking some sort of outlet because experiencing death like that especially of a young child can be traumatizing. I hope you find some closure and I am so sorry for your loss. My condolences to the family as well, but bashing the hotel and it’s workers does not do much other than tear down the same Caribbean that you say you are from. Yes it is tragic but where were the parents? That was literally the first question that came out of mouth when I saw this as breaking news that day. As a mother of two very young children I am near paranoid about them being in water, when we go to the beach I don’t let them in the water alone and If it’s shallow enough I watch them like a hawk because frankly anything can happen. As sad as it is, if I were to take my eyes off then and God forbid they drowned, who am I to blame but myself? Come on, be real my dear. I do hope the hotel improves on the sanitary, meals, and staffing aspects, to ultimately attract more tourists.

        Please note: We are a Caribbean island, this is a pandemic, we are still trying to accommodate tourists and their dream paradise vacations while being severely underpaid and worried about contracting Covid. Perfection cannot be expected. But I know for a fact they do try to please guests both Black and white. I’m pretty sure noone stood and watched the child drowning, I’m pretty sure the parents know that they are to blame, and I’m pretty sure you know that as well. Frustrated as you are, I hope you feel better and I hope the family of the deceased can find peace in knowing that her little soul is safe somewhere- be it heaven or whatever they believe in.

      • Until you walk in that persons shoes. Don’t judge. You would feel the same if it was your child. Rest In Peace sweet baby.

    • Agree 100% .Im an Antiguan. People dont like to hear the truth. They keep saying the parents but if a kids pool is close by why didnt the on duty lifeguard stop them from proceeding to the jacuzzi. What they need to realise it could be anyone’s child. wrong is wrong

  10. Same thing happened with some English couple who left their autistic daughter alone at some Resort in Thailand and she walk out into the jungle by sheself and dead. Some people are just not fit to be parents and it’s always the child that suffers.

  11. Ming (The Author) you talk really cheap. My aunty and kids went to royalton, and she told me that for the 5 day she was there, everyday at 1pm she took the kids to kidz club to enjoy her self on rum and have some fun and at 6pm she picks the kids up. She also told me that before reaches the beach and Jacuzzi u have to pass the kids pool. Signs r not no one need a brain to tell u Jacuzzi is for adult in a resort. Where were the parents? If the parents where there do u think this accident would have happen? I am a mom my daughter is 13 and i dont allow her to go into water without me period stop blame the hotel, the hotel provide kids pool. Rest in peace baby girl.

    • Until you walk in that persons shoes. Don’t judge. My son jumped into a pool at the age of 3 with me right there. It takes seconds. Thank The lord I was there to save him

  12. The headline “Friend… The story starts “Meet Izabela” and then went on to say this is the story of how I met her…
    But sadly the writer is using this for self aggrandizement and to knock the hotel.
    It is sad that the little girl’s memory is being used by this person to insult other people.
    And when I read it the first time I suspect it was not a family friend who would have known me the family of the deceased for some time, but a Caribbean person with the petty jealousies that run in these parts.
    It is funny that you knock the hotel for so much, but I never heard one iota of resposibilty from you “Friend”. And were you and your “friends” following the hotel’s physical distance protocols?

  13. STRAIGHT FORWARD
    No mention of the responsibility of the parent to safe guard the life of their precious five year old.

    An external defibrillator must never be used in wet conditions.

    Mother that is a nurse did not know what to do in her own emergency situation. I have heard of mothers lifting cars off their children to save their lives .

    All workers are entitled to a lunch break..

    The hotel should have closed the Jacuzzi until the family departed. Flowers and candle light would have been a good will gesture from the hotel.

    The parents failed their child.

    The hotel has gotten a lot of negative reviews since its opening, check Trip Advisor however you still booked to go there.

    Did you expect better service from the hotel knowing the service was poor prior to your booking?

    Condolences to the family.

  14. 1. WHERE WERE HER PARENTS???

    2. WHY DID YOU BRING THE FAMILY BACK IN THE SPOTLIGHT WITH THIS ARTICLE, IF YOU THINK THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN ATTACKED BY COMMENTS, YOU HAD TO HAVE KNOWN YOUR DEROGATORY ARTICLE IN AN ANTIGUAN PAPER WITH AN ANTIGUAN AUDIENCE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN RECEIVED WELL. YOU DID THIS!

    3. WHERE WERE HER PARENTS????

    4. YOU KEEP MENTIONING THERE WAS NO ‘NO KIDS ALLOWED SIGN… … U DONT NEED A SIGN TO MAKE GOOD PARENTING DECISIONS.

    5. WHERE WERE HER PARENTS!?!

    6. TROPICAL COUNTRIES HAVE MOSQUITOS

    7. I AM WELL TRAVELED TO OTHER CARIBBEAN COUNTRIES AS WELL AS AFRICA. WHEN YOU TRAVEL TO CERTAIN PLACES, YOU GO THERE FOR THE EXPERIENCE AND CULTURE.

    I DONT TRAVEL TO THESE PLACES LOOKING FOR THINGS TO BE PERFECT OR ON THE LEVEL OF WHICH EVER 1ST WORLD COUNTRY I AM FROM. … SORRY ABOUT YOUR BROKEN SAFE OR WHATEVER ELSE WASN’T TO YOUR STANDARD, IN YOUR ROOM!!!

    BUT HOW DID THIS SAD EVENT TURN OUT TO BE ABOUT YOU AND YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS???

    9. WHERE WERE HER PARENTS!?! BOTH OF THEM?!?!

    10. WHERE WERE HER PARENTS!??

    THIS WAS A TRAGIC ACCIDENT.. ACCIDENTS HAPPEN AT ANY RESORT! IN ANTIGUA, IN LONDON, AT DISNEY WORLD! ACCIDENTS HAPPEN!!!! THERE IS NO NEED TO PLACE BLAME!!
    AT ALL

    AND PLEASE NOTE… I AM NOT BLAMING HER PARENTS I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHERE WERE THEY WHEN THEIR CHILDREN WERE IN WATER.

    P.S. EVEN IN A HAIR SALON, THEY LET YOU KNOW U ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN CHILDREN, NEVER MIND IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY AROUND A POOL, A BEACH AND JACUZZI!!

    RIP SWEET GIRL… YOU WERE TOO GOOD FOR THIS WORLD!

  16. I’m truly sorry for the loss of life for this little girl. My prayers are with her family. May she find peace now.

    If the author of this article is telling the full truth, then I’m deeply disturbed by the fact that you have a nurse who’s on lunch, and while the nurse is on lunch, the keys to the defibrillator is also “on lunch”. How can this be? You want to tell me that common sense could not say that if the nurse is on lunch, then the key should be in a spot that allows for other person to have access to the machine to save a life?

    I pray and hope that this is not the full story, and something else was going on the the background that prevented the machine being used. Some other PROPER excuse.

    Let’s not play the blame game, but try to learn from this so that such a tragedy NEVER happens again.

    BTW,why are there no base stations for the fire and ambulances in the far southern and eastern and south western side of the islands?

    In an emergency, we all know that time is of the essence, so it is important that emergency vehicles are right there to brings person to the city

  17. Some of these comments are so ignorant and really sad to say the least!!!

    Rest in peace Izabela

    My condolences to her family at this extremely heartbreaking time!!!
    When I heard this news my heart sank and all I could think of is my own children.
    My heart goes out to all her family and all that witnessed this tragic event.

    May God bless you all!!

  19. This is so tragic and sad and my heart hurts so badly for her family, I can only imagine the pain they feel, unbearable. Please stop all the racist ignorant comments on this article and stop and think for a second that a child lost her life tragically and her parents and family are grieving tremendously. Put aside all of your selfish racist ways and maybe take a second of quiet for this little girl and her grieving family

Comments are closed.