OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — A 7-year-old boy has died after rescue crews pulled him from Crockery Lake late Sunday afternoon.
Rescuers on scene told FOX 17 the boy, now identified as Natanael Escobar, had been under water for more than an hour after entering the lake to help an 11-year-old boy who was struggling to swim.
The Escobar’s body was pulled from the water shortly before 6:00 p.m. after being found just 30 feet off shore. Efforts to revive the boy on scene were unsuccessful.
Authorities said Escobar was found in the lake at Grose Park in Conklin in roughly 12 feet of water.
Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department Capt. John Wolffis told FOX 17 the boy was at the lake with his church group, who could be seen hugging and praying with each other nearby after the drowning.
Crews were dispatched to the lake, which is southeast of Ravenna, around 4:40 p.m. on multiple reports into dispatch that a young child had fallen into the water and gone missing.
Authorities said neither boys were wearing life jackets.
