Feb. 17 marked the three year anniversary of the passing of an Argyle toddler who fell into a septic tank that was not properly covered.
Alisandra Galvan, who was three years old at the time, was playing in her backyard when she allegedly stepped on an ill fitting septic hole cover and fell inside the tank and drowned.
Argyle Police Captain Temple Cottle said at the time that such occurrences were rare for the town.
“For Argyle, and there are a lot of septic systems here, this is the first call that I remember getting in the last 10 years,” Cottle said shortly after the incident occurred.
Fast forward three years, and jury selection just began in a wrongful death lawsuit alleging that the homeowners were negligent in not securing the the tank to make sure it was safe.
Myla and Vance Galvan, Alisandra’s parents, brought the lawsuit against the rental house owners, Terry and Inger Risenhoover, and are represented by Jim Girards.
The Galvan’s could not be reached for comment.
Shortly following the incident, Tony Walker, Regional Director for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, said most septic systems do not allow for the possibility of falling in.
“Generally speaking, there is only a small opening that gives access to the tanks,” Walker said. “The openings on those systems are generally not large enough to allow anyone to fall into them.”
Unfortunately, this was not the case for Alisandra Galvan, who’s body was discovered in the early morning hours at the bottom of the tank along with the lid.
The case is being tried in the 393rd Judicial District Court of Denton County.
The Galvan family started the Ali’s Sleeping Angels Foundation to raise awareness about the possible safety hazards associated with residential septic tank systems.
Visit www.AlisSleepingAngelsFoundation.org for more information.
