Mother Proposes Pool Alarm Rules After Son's Drowning

Families with pools and children who wander could see new alarm and cover requirements if the Waylon's Law proposal advances.

Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Special Needs

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a dark pool cover stretched over an empty pool beside a plain metal fence post, evoking residential pool safety. — Hendersonville mother Haley Wilder is proposing pool alarm and cover requirements after her autistic son, Waylon, drowned in a neighbor's pool. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Haley Wilder is proposing two pool and home safety policies after her autistic son, Waylon, wandered into a neighbor's pool and drowned. The family is also launching Waylon's Legacy Foundation with two petitions and a survey on the safety challenges families face.

Why it matters

Waylon had a tendency to elope, and the family believes better safeguards, such as a pool alarm, could have made a difference. For households with children who wander, the gap between a pool being in reach and being noticed can be seconds, which is why the proposed rules focus on alarms and covers.

The family proposes Waylon's Law to extend pool alarm requirements to existing in-ground pools and a cover requirement for unheated in-ground pools. A separate proposal, the Waylon Safe Steps Act, focuses on home safety for families of children with developmental disabilities.

The players

Haley Wilder

Mother of Waylon Wilder and founder of Waylon's Legacy Foundation, based in Sumner County, Tennessee.

Waylon's Legacy Foundation

Newly launched family-led foundation pursuing pool safety policy and developmental-disability safety awareness in Tennessee.

The details

Waylon wandered into a neighbor's pool in a matter of seconds, a pattern the family links to his tendency to elope. The proposed pool rules would add alarms to pools that currently lack them and require covers on unheated in-ground pools, which are not covered by an alarm when no one is watching. The family is also using a survey to collect accounts from other families about the safety gaps they face at home.

Waylon drowned in a neighbor's pool on a date not specified in the source.

The Home Front

Pool safety rules in Tennessee have historically applied most strictly to new construction, leaving many existing in-ground pools without alarms or covers. The Waylon's Law proposal would extend those requirements to the home pools already in place across Hendersonville and surrounding Sumner County.

If you have an in-ground pool, check whether it has a working alarm and a cover, and consider scheduling a licensed pool professional to evaluate alarm options for your system. If you care for a child who wanders, keep a current photo, consider door and gate alarms, and talk with your family about what to do if a child goes missing.

The takeaway

For families with a child who elopes, a pool is a risk that can appear in seconds, so layered barriers matter. Keeping alarms, covers, and gate locks in place is a low-cost habit worth building into your home routine.