Two-year-old boy rescued from Napier pool dies in hospital

The two-year-old who was rescued after nearly drowning at the Napier Aquatic Centre has died in hospital. Photo / File

The 2-year-old boy who was rescued from a pool at the Napier Aquatic Centre last Saturday has died in hospital.

A police spokesperson confirmed the boy, who was initially taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital, died in Starship Children's Hospital in Auckland on Wednesday.

The spokesperson described the death as a "drowning incident".

Emergency services were called to the pool about 11.56am on December 5.

The toddler was initially transported to hospital with critical injuries, before being transported to Starship where he later died of his injuries on Wednesday.

A WorkSafe spokesperson said it was making initial inquiries to determine what happened, and what its next steps might be.

A police spokesperson said inquiries into the circumstances are ongoing.

The centre is owned by Napier City Council who said "our sincere condolences go out to this child's whānau".

"The Aquatic Centre staff are understandably emotionally impacted by the child's passing. We will be supporting our team who responded to the incident."

On Monday the council commenced an incident review process conducted by an external agency which specialises in these types of reviews.

The council spokesperson said the council would work alongside WorkSafe and the coroner "to ensure they have all the information they need".