13-year-old boy dies after being pulled from Bell Pond in Worcester

WORCESTER, Mass. — A 13-year-old Worcester boy has died after being pulled from Bell Pond.

Just after 8 p.m. on Wednesday, officers were called to Bell Pond for a reported swimmer in distress. When officers arrived, several people on the beach yelled that a boy was missing in the water. Several other people were in the water searching.

The Worcester Fire Scuba Team arrived on scene and located the boy within three-and-a-half minutes. He was found in 12-feet of water approximately 69-feet from shore.

Officials believe the boy was under water for about 15 minutes.

Life support measures were taken and he was rushed to UMass Medical Center. They were able to restore a pulse and the boy began to breath.

"The first officer on scene went in with his full uniform on," Worcester Police Sergeant Kerry Hazelhurst said. "He gave it a really great effort, and I really give a shout out to the people that were there helping the officer."

Early Thursday morning, police learned that the boy had passed away.

The incident is under investigation. Police say the boy's name will not be released.

While the pond is shallow close to shore, Hazelhurst said a current can change things in an instant.

"There's a current that can run pretty strong when you're further out and it does drop off rather quickly," Hazelhurst said.

One witness says Bell Pond's easy access turned the spot into a deadly attraction after lifeguards ended their day.

"It's there, it's available, it's accessible," Kevin Pettiway said. "They just left, their shift was over. Their commitment was done."

One person living in the area was left thinking about their own child after the death.

"It's very sad because my son is the same age, you know," Junior Roberts said.

While investigating, police say there were four lifeguards working at the beach during the day, but their shift ended at 7 p.m. At that time, the lifeguards posted signs, got everyone out of the water and told them the beach was closed for the remainder of the day.

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Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus sent a statement with regards to the drowning, expressing his sadness and sympathy to the boy's family and friends.

Augustus asked city residents to play it safe this summer, and to get familiar with the rules and regulations of city parks and to observe them, including the one that about swimming only when a lifeguard is present.

Cox Media Group