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‘Khaleel will dearly be missed’: Family of Houston teen electrocuted in hotel swimming pool mourns

HOUSTON – Family members of a Houston teen who was electrocuted while swimming in the North Villa Hotel swimming pool describe him as “such a beautiful soul.”

“The best big brother and friend anyone could have ever asked for,” His aunt, Teresa Aviles wrote online. “He was respectful, honest, sweet, loving, smart and caring."

“Khaleel will dearly be missed by his mother, father, brother, sisters, family and friends,” the post continued.

A GoFundMe account has been set up by Reynolds’ family members, “to help his mother Angel and her family out through these heart-shattering and life-changing times.”

On Wednesday, Harris County’s manager of environmental health programs, Marilyn Christian, who runs the pool inspections and permits team, said the North Villa pool failed inspection three times since July 2018.

“We closed the pool and told them that it had to remain closed until it fixed everything and we came back out to issue a permit,” Christian said.

She leads a team of four employees in charge of inspecting and permitting the county’s “close to 3,000″ non-backyard pools, including hotel, apartment and community pools.

In Harris County, a non-backyard pool must have a county permit to operate. Those permits must be renewed every year, Christian said.

Her team also responds to complaints “about two-three per week.”

Her team inspected the North Villa pool in July 2018, December 2018, and this weekend, the day after Reynolds died after touching an exposed wire in the pool.

The pool should have been closed to the public since July 2018, Christian said.


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