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RIVERTON — A 2-year-old Riverton boy is in extremely critical condition after being pulled from a canal Tuesday afternoon.
The boy was playing with his uncle and some other children in a park near 4400 West and 12000 South when he went missing.
After about 20 minutes of searching, Riverton police were called. That's when someone noticed the hole in the fence and searchers began looking in the canal.
"They were spread out, and then they all kind of converged around one firefighter where there's the water wheel that turns around," said Amy Jack, who witnessed the rescue. "They got down into the water and they pulled out a small body."
Jack said emergency workers moved the boy to the sidewalk and began performing CPR. He was then transported to the hospital by a medical helicopter, where he remained on life support Tuesday night.
"This is devastating," said Unified Police Detective Levi Hughes. "It's devastating for the family, it's devastating to the firefighters and police officers who had to treat the young child today."
Neighbors in the area told KSL News they are upset because they've asked the city to fix the hole in the fence several times. They said it's been there for as many as five years.
"It's very attractive to a child, especially close to the water like that," Riverton resident Jessica Segelke said. "It's frustrating that something so tragic could have easily been prevented and it could easily happen again if it's not fixed soon."
City officials say they were unaware that any part of that fence was damaged. Riverton city manager Lance Blackwood said the fence in question often requires maintenance due to vandalism and wear and tear but at the time of the incident there had been no reports of damage.
"It's under investigation, we're certainly going to find out if there were other reports that were made that we did not know about," Blackwood said.
Blackwood said the fence, which runs approximately 800 feet alongside the Swenson Farms Park, receives frequent maintenance checks during the year and he was unaware of any complaints of a long-standing hole.
"I know every year we make repairs on this fence," Blackwood said. "It's an ongoing maintenance issue."
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Written with contributions from Sarah Dallof and Benjamin Wood.
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