A 10-year-old boy in Tennessee, Benjamin Luckett, has lost his life after trying to save his sister who fell into a frozen pond near their home in Shelby County.
It is believed that the 6-year-old girl, Abigail, fell into the pond while walking on thin ice. Benjamin immediately went into the pond to try and save her after he saw that she had fallen in. Moments later, his father arrived on the scene after being called by a third sibling and he was able to save young Abigail, sadly Benjamin could not be saved in time. Both children were rushed to hospital following the incident.
Brent Perkins of the Shelby County Fire Department stated afterwards to the media:
"It's a low probability event with, unfortunately, a high consequence and our hearts go out to the family right now. So, the bottom line is the bodies of water down here normally don't freeze with enough thickness to support a person on it and it can be very dangerous. Firefighters tried to launch an inflatable boat and even dived in to search for the boy in the freezing water but by the time they found him, it was too late. The victim will go into the water and their body is completely assaulted by what's happening. It's so cold and breathing is next to impossible."
Benjamin Luckett died after rushing to save sibling Abigail by holding her head above water while another sibling sought help https://t.co/e1911XSOmK
— Metro (@MetroUK) February 17, 2021
Abigail is currently in the hospital. She had been temporarily placed on a machine in intensive care to help her breath and she still has difficulty walking, she is however expected to make a full recovery.
A fundraiser was set up to assist the family and has so far reached almost $34,000. The GoFundMe page states:
"The Luckett family lost their little boy Benjamin, he died saving the life of his sister who fell into a frozen pond. She is in icu right now fighting. Robert, their father was the manager of Bartlett lanes for many years and the children all bowl in the youth leagues now at Andy B's. Any help from our community and large bowling family is appreciated to go towards medical and funeral expenses. Thank you!"
An update reads:
"Just wanted to say thank you to everyone that donated and shared the GoFundMe for the Luckett's. The amount of support was amazing! It will remain open for donations and please share that Abigail is doing much better!"
Authorities hope that the message that walking or playing on ice is dangerous will now be heard by as many people as possible and that future tragedies can be prevented.
[h/t: I heart Intelligence]
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