A family got extremely disheartening news they probably never expected. Their 8-year-old son died in a hospital Sunday afternoon after falling through the ice in a half-frozen pond in North Carolina, WBTV reported.
Kymello McLean was a second grader at Overton Elementary School. A drowning call came into authorities at 2:38 p.m. that three boys, two 11-year-olds and 8-year-old Kymello, were playing near a pond at a park when Kymello wanted to walk out onto the ice. Suddenly, the ice broke, sending him into chilling water underneath, My Fox 8 reported.
"They were trying to see if they would go down if it would hold their weight," said a neighbor who declined to be identified. "I guess they thought it would because the rocks are still there but it's not going to hold a person's weight."
The two other boys tried to rescue Kymello by using sticks to reach him, but they were unable to.
When firefighters arrived, they put on flotation gear to wade into the pond since the boy was unable to be seen from the pond bank. Rafts were also used in the pond to try to bring Kymello to safety. He was found after 18 minutes of searching, but was unresponsive when brought from the water.
A hospital just two blocks away from the pond tried to treat the young boy, but they were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at roughly 4:00 p.m.
