First Alert 4 Investigates: Summer camps’ hidden danger

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - As summer vacation approaches, parents Olga and Travone Mister are raising concerns about camp safety following the drowning of their 6-year-old son, TJ, at a camp run by St. Louis County. The couple is advocating for stricter regulations, claiming current measures fall short and may put other children at risk.

First Alert 4 Investigates has been following the case for years and uncovering what the Mister family says is a gap in safety.

TJ drowned in July 2022 at an unlicensed county-run summer camp. Missouri does not regulate camps, meaning they are not licensed such as other childcare facilities like daycares. The way things stand, there is no requirement for camps to run background checks on employees or have staff with medical training.

“I didn’t know what questions to ask,” Olga Mister said. “I just assumed that TJ was safe.”

The Misters are pushing for statewide camp licensing and thought St. Louis County would lead the way by passing a camp safety ordinance that would apply to camps run in the county. Instead, the Misters say their pleas for a county-wide ordinance were ignored, and the county passed a limited ordinance that sets rules for the camps run by the county. Currently, there are four camps run by St. Louis County.

“The most important thing is to do it right not to do it fast and I think the county just did it fast,” Olga Mister said.

The county’s ordinance targets multiple things that happened the day TJ died, including making swim tests, lifeguard requirements, and first aid training. However, these changes do not impact the majority of camps in the area.

In the years since TJ’s death, reporting by First Alert 4 Investigates exposed multiple things the Mister family claims were missteps made by the county.

TJ drowned while attending a camp at the Kennedy Recreation Center. First Alert 4 uncovered that on the day TJ died, the pool had only one lifeguard for over 40 children, despite county policy requiring two lifeguards. Surveillance footage showed TJ struggling for nearly five minutes before a camp counselor pulled him out of the water.

First Alert 4 exposed police records showing two children told officers they tried to get help and told the head counselor TJ was struggling in the pool. According to police, both children say they were ignored.

Once TJ was out of the water, reporting by First Alert 4 Investigates found staff performed CPR but never used a potentially lifesaving AED, despite having one.

First Alert 4 found the 911 call was sent to a Colorado call center because the county’s internet-based phone wasn’t set up properly.

Reporting by First Alert 4 Investigates uncovered emails sent months before TJ’s death, where parks department staff discussed lifeguard shortages and questioned if it would be safe to open the Kennedy Center pool. First Alert 4 Investigates found emails showing Councilman Ernie Trakas got involved when he heard the pool might not open.

“Let me make myself perfectly clear. I expect the Kennedy pool to be open by the end of June,” Trakas wrote in an email.

After TJ’s death, Trakas introduced the camp safety ordinance. First Alert 4 Investigates tried to talk to Trakas before a recent county council meeting. When asked if he would take questions about the summer camp safety ordinance, Trakas responded, “Not now.”

First Alert 4 Investigates asked Trakas if he’d be interested in looking at expanding the ordinance to affect all kids in the county, Trakas answered, “I’m focused on the meeting tonight right now. Maybe we could talk some other time.”

Other council members had more to say on the topic.

“We started with the ones we can control and then with an eye to looking at a broader view,” said Councilman Dennis Hancock. “I think we need to look at what can we do to make sure we’re keeping our kids as safe as we can do it.”

Other council members questioned if the county could do more.

“We’re pretty limited on what we can do based on our jurisdiction,” said Councilwoman Lisa Clancy.

“If you’re in Brentwood or Clayton then those governmental bodies enact those ordinances,” said Councilwoman Rita Heard Days.

Doug Forbes has spent almost five years pushing for camp safety regulations, ever since his 6-year-old daughter Roxie daughter drowned at a Los Angeles-area camp.

“There’s no price that you can put on a 6-year-old child’s life. No price,” Forbes said. “If this can happen to our child, it can happen to any child.”

Forbes successfully lobbied for broad sweeping camp and swim safety measures in Los Angeles County. The change requires camps there to be licensed and parents can now go online and see inspection reports.

“If we can do this in the most populous county in the most populous state in America, meaning enact meaningful, logical camp safety laws, then we can do it here in certainly St. Louis County,” Forbes said.

Forbes thought what he did could be a blueprint for St. Louis County, he presented it to council members and wants to know why they chose a different direction.

“I wrote countless emails, I made phone calls,” Forbes said. “I don’t know what it’s going to take for St. Louis County to wake up and say this is our precious cargo and we can protect them inexpensively and immediately.”

First Alert 4 Investigates took his questions to county council members.

When asked if he’d like to see an ordinance similar to what was passed in Los Angeles County, Councilman Dennis Hancock responded, “I think right now everything is on the table. It should be.”

When asked if Los Angeles is doing it why can’t St. Louis County do it, Councilwoman Lisa Clancy answered, “We’re a different county in a different state with a different set of rules.”

For the Mister family, timing is everything. The county council passed its limited ordinance the day after TJ would have turned 8-years-old.

“I feel like the day after TJ’s birthday was a little planned,” Olga Mister said.

The family continues to advocate for camp regulations, emphasizing the need for parents to be informed.

“Ask how many staff are CPR certified, do they have an emergency action plan, and how many lifeguards will be present,” Olga Mister advised.

Last year, St. Louis County paid the Misters an $8 million settlement after the family sued for TJ’s wrongful death.

A proposed state law known as TJ’s Law would have established camp licensing across Missouri but failed to gain traction this legislative session. The Misters hope it will be reintroduced in the next session.

“We don’t give up,” Olga Mister said. “We’re going to continue to fight and we’re not going to go away.”

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