The family struggled to find cell reception to call 911
In a horrific boat accident on Friday, a 6-year-old girl died in Arizona after her mother accidentally struck the child with a boat propeller, New York Post reported.
According to Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, the incident took place on Lake Pleasant in Arizona Friday morning.
The police in a press release said that the girl was swimming at about 11 am at a cove when the tragedy took place. Two families in a group of 12 people were out on a boat on the lake when 911 dispatchers received a call from one family that their 6-year-old daughter had been struck by a boat's propeller.
Witnesses at the scene informed the police that the girl's mother was operating the boat and was unaware that the child was in the water when she started to drive, pulling the husband on a wakeboard.
The father noticed that someone was in the water and swam over. "He and the mother quickly realized their daughter was in the water and had suffered a leg amputation from the boat's propeller," the department said in a statement.
The family struggled to find cell reception to call 911, but nearby boaters helped the family by loading the injured girl into the boat and rushing her to shore.
"The child was transported to the lake marina by her family, where MCSO deputies and fire personnel met them and immediately began rendering aid to the child and subsequently transported the child to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced deceased," the release said.
Although the incident is still under investigation, the police department believes it was just a tragic accident.
The department mentioned that all the 12 members were wearing life vests and none appeared to be under the influence.
"Contributing factors that may have led to this incident is a lot of people on the boat," police said.