Beachgoers frantically try to dig out children buried after sand hole collapses in Florida, but 7-year-old girl dies

An 8-year-old boy was hospitalized and a 7-year-old girl died after they were buried under sand at a Florida beach on Tuesday afternoon, according to firefighters.

Witnesses said that the children were digging a hole in the sand with other people at Lauderdale-by-the-Sea when it suddenly collapsed and buried the children.

The boy was buried up to his chest and the girl was completely buried underneath the boy.

Bystanders jumped in to help dig them out, but they were too late to save the girl. She was pronounced dead after paramedics rushed her to Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale.

“We were conducting life-saving techniques to try to bring her pulse back, and it never did recover and she was pronounced dead at the hospital,” said Pompano Beach Fire Rescue spokesperson Sandra King.

Cellphone video captured the scene as beachgoers jumped in to dig in the hole next to first responders. They had to keep the sides from continuing to collapse in on the girl as they dug.

The parents of the boy carried him to a Broward Sheriff’s Office car, and he was transported to a hospital. He was listed in critical but stable condition.

King said they received calls about the sand collapse at about 3 p.m. The fire department said the hole had been about five to six feet deep before it collapsed.

“It was an unfathomable accident,” she added.

She did not say whether the victims were visitors or local to the area but added that the Sheriff's office is investigating the tragic incident.

"Just an absolutely horrific and heartbreaking situation," said Anna McAllister, a reporter for WFOR-TV.

Lauderdale-by-the-Sea is a beach town of about 6,200 people 33 miles north of Miami.

Here's a news report about the incident:

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