After a girl died on a Florida beach last Tuesdaythe authorities identified the minor and her family, letting it be known that it was she and her 9-year-old brother who were buried alive in a sand hole that they themselves dug while playing.
According to the police report, the children were playing on a beach in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, digging, when they became trapped in the sand that collapsed on them, the network reported. CBS.
Authorities indicated that the children were trapped around 3:00 pm on Tuesday, February 20, and that witnesses said the hole was between 5 and 6 feet deep, around 1.8 and 2 m, when the sand Collapsed.
When the sand walls fell on them, 7-year-old Sloan Mattingly was completely buried in it, while her brother Maddox was covered up to his neck and was able to scream for help.
When the emergency services arrived they found around 20 people on the beach frantically digging to rescue the children, although it has not been possible to determine how far away their parents were at the time of the accident.
Paramedics took both to the hospital, but the girl was later pronounced dead, while her brother is recovering at Broward Health Medical Center in stable condition.
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office announced that the children were part of a family from Indiana that was vacationing in Florida, reported CNN.
A 7-year-old girl died on Tuesday after being trapped in a collapsed sand hole at a beach in Florida. The incident occurred in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, a coastal town near Miami, where the girl, Sloan Mattingly, was on vacation with her family from Indiana. #RIP #Indiana #Florida pic.twitter.com/TImaO8V2Q7
— Bnz English (@BnzEnglish) February 23, 2024
The incident remains under investigation by authorities. Sea rescue experts have criticized the lack of lifeguards on the beach who could have prevented the children from digging the hole too deep.
According to Tampa Bay TimesLauderdale-by-the-Sea beach did not have lifeguards, but other beaches in the area have lifeguards and are instructed to prevent people from digging holes more than 2 feet deep, approximately 60 cm.
The boys’ school issued a statement this week offering condolences to the family and asking others to keep them in their thoughts.
“It is with a heavy heart that I write this to let you know that we lost a precious member of the Lafayette Meadows school family. Sloan Mattingly was a bright, sweet, and loving first grader in Mrs. Vanbrocklin’s class. “Sloan passed away on Tuesday (…) Our administrative team and counselors have support resources available for any student or staff member who needs it during this time of loss,” the text noted.
#identify #7yearold #girl #died #buried #Florida #Beach
