Police have shared that a young girl was killed in Florida on Tuesday after a deep hole she was digging on a south Florida beach collapsed on her, burying her alive.
First responders were called to Lauderdale-by-the-Sea at around 3 p.m., where they found an 8-year-old boy who was digging the hole with the girl buried up to his chest in the sand, Pompano Beach Fire Rescue spokesperson Sandra King shared.
The girl, who was about 7 years old, was completely buried underneath the boy in the hole that was 5 or 6 feet deep when it collapsed, King shared with the Orlando Sentinel.
Rescuers dug around the children, working to free them and using support boards to keep more sand from collapsing around them, King said, noting that they didn’t know how long they were buried before emergency responders arrived.
After being freed, the boy and girl were taken to Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale. The girl was pronounced dead at the hospital, and the boy was hospitalized in stable condition, King shared.
The Broward Sheriff’s Office’s investigation into the tragedy remains ongoing at this time.