HARRISON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – The survival story of a near victim of Tuesday’s storms is nothing short of amazing, according to Harrison Fire Rescue Chief Amos Mikkelson.
“At 11 years old, it’s amazing he had the sense of mind to do that.”
It’s an incredible story of survival.
Of all the sudden severe weather Tuesday, perhaps no one felt more frightened than a young boy in Calumet County near High Cliff State Park.
Rushing flood waters washed an 11-year-old boy into a drainage ditch around 6 p.m., emergency crews racing to save the child’s life.
Authorities say the boy went under in a drainage ditch and never resurfaced.
The 11-year-old and a group of other boys had been playing in the water when the boy went under.
One of the boys ran home to tell his parents, who called for help immediately.
Lt. Mark Wiegert, of the Calumet County Sheriff’s Office, tells FOX 11…
“At that time, the Sheriff’s Office responded with several officers. There was approximately three feet of water over the roadway, at that time, so they began searching the roadway area.”
Harrison first responders, fire and rescue and all members of the dive team were also dispatched.
Mikkelson tells FOX 11 they found the boy after nearly 40 minutes, his finger poking through the manhole cover about 30 feet from where he disappeared underwater.
“It really is probably more of a miracle. Chances are, he probably popped up in that spot because that was the first spot where there was an air pocket, and so his body probably trying to float got there and he realized there’s a handle and started just pulling himself up because that was where there was air.”
Officials say this close-call should be a reminder to parents: what may seem like harmless fun can turn dangerous quickly.
“They’re not pools, they’re not playgrounds. Don’t let your kids play by them. It’s really quite something that this young man came out of it unscathed,” said deputy chief of the Harrison Fire Rescue EMS Squad Don Jungen.
The boy was responsive and speaking to them when they found him.
“We’re one big team, and we worked really, really well together,” Jungen said. “This is a good save…this is a good one.”
