By Mark Wineka
mark.wineka@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — An 8-year-old boy died Sunday afternoon after breaking through ice and going underwater in a pond at Elizabeth Holmes Hurley Park.

The youngster, who had been at the park with two friends, was submerged in the icy water for at least 10 minutes, probably more, onlookers said.

EMS workers started CPR in an ambulance at the scene before it headed off to Novant Health Rowan Medical Center at 3:08 p.m. The call about the boy’s falling into the water reached 911 at 2:38 p.m.

Lts. Brian Sebastian and Eric Bost worked from a Salisbury Fire Department raft, using poles to poke through thin layers of ice while they searched for the boy.

When the firefighters located the boy, they pulled him into the raft and were quickly pulled to a bank where an EMS crew and stretcher were waiting.

“EMS, coming to you,” one of the men shouted as the boy was pulled out of the water. “Go, go, go.”

A small creek feeds the pond, which is located at the end of Hurley Park next to City Park off Lake Drive. Hurley Park is a garden park with trails.

The boy’s friends helped Salisbury Police officers in showing the approximate area where the boy had fallen in.

Chris Kepley of the Salisbury Fire Department said the incident hit her colleagues hard. When the boy was pulled from the icy water, he was not responsive.

Contact Mark Wineka at 704-797-4263.