A 5-year-old Bainbridge Island boy was airlifted to Seattle Children’s Hospital Wednesday afternoon after nearly drowning during a pool party at a home in Crystal Springs.

Bainbridge Island Fire Department Assistant Chief Luke Carpenter said the boy’s mother called 911 after the child was found at the bottom of the 5-foot-deep pool.

Someone at the party started CPR on the boy, whose sixth birthday is Thursday, and he had started breathing by the time emergency responders arrived, Carpenter said.

“He was breathing on his own just before we got there,” Carpenter said.

The boy had a reduced level of consciousness, Carpenter said, but was trying to talk before he was taken to the hospital.