A 9-year-old child died after an incident at The Boardwalk at Hersheypark’s water park in Hershey, Pennsylvania, on Thursday night.
John Lawn, the CEO of Hershey Entertainment, said that a lifeguard team saw the child was in trouble and quickly performed a rescue. Lifeguards, on-site first responders, and medical personnel worked together without stopping to save the child’s life.
The child was taken immediately to Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, but despite all efforts, the child did not survive.
The company has not shared the cause of the child’s death and asked for privacy by not releasing personal details at this time. “Our hearts break for this child and their family. We offer our deepest sympathy for their loss,” CEO Lawn said in a statement posted on the park’s Facebook page.
Hershey Entertainment said it will carry out a thorough internal investigation and will cooperate fully with authorities to understand what happened.
The Boardwalk at Hersheypark is a water park that opened in 2007 and has 16 water attractions. Hersheypark itself is a historic amusement park that has been open for 119 years.
The CEO added, “To every family that visits Hersheypark, please know your safety is our top priority. We will investigate this tragedy carefully and honor the memory of this young guest by continuing to focus on guest safety.”
This story is still developing and will be updated as more information becomes available.
