BRANDON, Fla. — A 6-year-old child died after drowning on Sunday in Brandon.
Hillsborough County Sheriff's deputies found the child, who has autism, in a body of water after the 6-year-old was reported missing just before 4 p.m. in the area of Kensington Lakes Circle, according to the sheriff's office.
They performed life-saving measures and the child was transported to a local hospital where he or she was pronounced dead. The sheriff's office is conducting a death investigation.
Drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4 and the second leading cause of unintentional death for children in the 5 to 14 age group, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In the United States, 973 children under the age of 19 drowned in 2021, and another 6,500 were treated in emergency rooms following near-drowning incidents, according to Gary Karton of Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit organization working to prevent childhood injury.
The organization advises that all children should learn to step or jump into water that's above their head and safely return to the surface. They should also learn how to float or tread water.
Click here to learn about water safety and how to stay safe this summer.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
