Toddler falls in septic tank and drowns as neighbors try saving her, Texas rescuers say

A toddler drowned after falling into a septic tank despite neighbors and firefighters “bravely” trying to save her life, Texas officials say.

Two-year-old Charleigh Nicole Nelson fell about 15 feet into the septic tank at an RV park in Aransas Pass, which is just east of Corpus Christi, KRIS reported. The girl’s father said the family and neighbors tried reaching her with a rope, but it was too short, the TV station reported.

Residents also desperately tried to reach her using a backhoe and shovels as emergency crews arrived with heavy equipment of their own, according to the Rockport Volunteer Fire Department. Nothing was successful.

“We had a local business with a backhoe respond in minutes upon our request, several community members in the RV Park, a true community effort to try and save the child,” Rockport Volunteer Fire Department spokesman Gillian Cox told KIII.

Finally, firefighters in a specialized rope rescue team reached her in the water below, officials said. By that time it had been an hour since the girl fell underwater, and she had drowned, officials said.

The septic tank was less than two feet in diameter, KRIS reported. It had about two to three feet of water in it, KIII reported.

“This is a terrible tragedy for the family of this child, her neighbors who witnessed the event and all of the (first) responders who assisted in the recovery,” Cox said in a news release.

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