Jul 4, 2008 9:46 pm US/Central
5-Year-Old Boy Drowns In Lake Off Jackson Park
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
Fourth of July celebrations turned tragic for one family after a 5-year-old fell into Lake Michigan and drowned.
As CBS 2's Mai Martinez reports, members of the community are calling on the city and others to help prevent this from happening to another child.
A home video showed what it looked like last night as rescue crews frantically searched Lake Michigan for a little boy who fell in.
Fifteen to 20 minutes later, they pulled 5-year-old Ronald Evans out of the water. He was rushed to Comer Children's Hospital where he later died.
Those who watched the tragedy unfold say they are heartbroken.
"Everybody just wanted to know was the baby okay," said witness Imonia Parham.
"When we found out it was a child, it just hit home for me because I have four children, said witness Veronica Reeves.
According to Chicago Police, the boy was playing next to the water when he lost his balance and fell into Lake Michigan. Many families who frequent this area say they would feel safer if there was a fence or something in place to keep kids from going into the water, but they add parents and other adults have to do their part, too, to keep kids safe.
"I would like to see everybody try to pitch in and watch each other's kids," said parent Lou Edmond. "That would help, if we would all work together on that."
Parent Hedy Donnald said, "All kids are precious. Whether they are yours or not, kind of keep a watch on all of them."
Donnald said to be extra safe, the adults in her family form a circle around their kids to make sure they don't wander off when they're close to the water.
She said too often that's not the case with other children in the park.
"When I first got here, I seen a little boy running toward that way, and I got up and ran behind him," Donnald said.
Donnald and other parents only wish someone had been out there last night to do the same for little Ronald Evans.
Family members tell CBS 2 that Ronald Evans was with some family friends and two of his sisters last night when he drowned. They were getting ready to watch the fireworks show.
The boy was playing next to the water in Jackson Park, east of Hayes and Coast Guard drives, when he lost his balance and fell into Lake Michigan about 8:30 p.m., police News Affairs Officer Amina Greer said.
The police Marine Unit pulled the boy from the water and took him to University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital in critical condition, police said.
Ronald Evans, of the 9400 block South Rhodes Avenue, later died at University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital at 9:30 p.m., a Cook County Medical Examiner's office spokesman said.
Fire Media Affairs spokesman Larry Langford said the boy was found under the mouth of Park Harbor about 15 to 20 minutes after falling into the water. He said a helicopter and diving crew searched the water for approximately nine minutes before finding him under water.
Calumet Area detectives are investigating the death as accidental.
Funeral arrangements have not been made because the family says they do not have the money to bury the 5-year-old.
CBS 2's Mai Martinez and the STNG Wire contributed to this report.
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