The family of a 7-year-old boy is in mourning after the child drowned in a Hickory, North Carolina, pond while trying to save a friend.
Investigators said Abel Friday-Williams was found by firefighters last week at the bottom of a small waterfall in a pond near Bruce Meisner Park.
Other WRAL Top Stories
"There needs to be awareness," said Lashun Ramseur, the boy's cousin. "Just looking at the situation, it is very dangerous. It's heartbreaking."
Deputies said they received information that the 7-year old, who came to the park with a friend and an adult, was possibly unsupervised at the time of the drowning. They are investigating those allegations and reports that the boy may have gone into the water to help his friend.
"It breaks my heart because he saved his friend ... he went in behind his friend to save his life and lost his," said Brianna Sledge, Abel's aunt.
The city of Hickory said the drowning did not happen on park property.
The area near the waterfall is part of the city's Northeast Wastewater Treatment Facility pump station. City leaders said Hickory did not build the path leading to the falls, and it is not intended for public use.
Tara Rink, a parent, said she was at the falls recently when a man jumped in to save a little girl. She described the conditions there as slick and dangerous.
"I assisted in pulling them out because there's no way I could have gotten them out because the rocks are too slick," Rink said. "It's nothing but slime. It was terrifying."
The mayor of Hickory said city leaders will look at whether changes need to be made in the area.