5-year-old Oakland County boy dies after being found in neighbor's pool
OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - A 5-year-old boy with special needs in Orion Township died after being found in a neighbor's above-ground pool.
According to the Oakland County Sheriff's Office, on Saturday, March 25, just before 4 p.m., deputies responded to a home in the 1100 block of Devon St. after the boy's grandfather said the boy was last seen at the house at approximately 3:30 p.m. The rear door was open, and the boy was missing.
When the boy left the home, he was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, but he wasn't wearing a jacket, and it was 37 degrees.
In addition, the grandfather told deputies that the boy had previously tried to leave the house.
Authorities began to look for the boy, searching nearby woods, a lake and a swamp and going house to house. The Oakland County Sheriff's Office says drones couldn't be used because of high winds.
Firefighters found the boy on the cover of an above-ground pool at a home on Crestmont Drive, about a block from where the boy lived.
According to the Oakland County Sheriff's Office, the pool cover had at least one foot of standing water on it and a ladder at the rear of the pool that they believe the boy used to gain access.
Paramedics performed CPR on the boy as he was transported to a local hospital, where he died a short time later.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Office says the autopsy was performed on Sunday, March 26, but the cause and manner of death are pending.