Uncertainty surrounds circumstances leading to man's death at Perth public swimming pool

The death of a Perth father in what media are calling a "freak pool accident" at the City of Stirling's Leisurepark Balga is being investigated.

Reports suggest that 29-year-old Jonathan Massandy may have been underwater for up to eight minutes before he was found by his six-year-old daughter with a broken neck.

Massandy was taken to hospital and put on life support, but, with the family’s permission, it was turned off three days later, after which he died.

Sarah Prijt, the mother of Massandy’s daughter and other child, according to reports, suggested that there was no lifeguard on duty at the facility at the time and advised that the pool stayed open after the incident.

Media reports have focused on the "unexplained circumstances" of Massandy's death, with doctors saying he broke several vertebrae in his neck and did not drown. Whether these were caused by a diving incident, fall or other circumstances is currently not clear.

Commenting on the incident, Jonathan Massandy's father Dominique Massandy told 7News "when they pulled him out, he had no pulse and he had no oxygen in his brain and they couldn't revive him."

Michael Quirk, Director of Community Development for the City of Stirling, which runs the facility, said he could not comment while it was being investigated.

He told media "given the matter is currently under coronial investigation, it is not appropriate for the City to comment on the particulars of the incident at this time.”

Quirk and the Council stated that their thoughts were with the family.

Western Australia has a proud history of minimal drownings in its public swimming pools.

Images show the Leisureplex Balga. Their use is for illustrative purposes only.