SOUTHWEST CITY, Mo. (AP) - A young brother and sister from rural southwest Missouri have died after falling into any icy pond while sledding at their home.
Divers and rescuers in flat-bottom boats worked for hours to locate and pull 9-year-old Grace Coday and 13-year-old Joseph Coday from the pond Friday near Southwest City.
Officials say Joseph was trapped below the ice for nearly an hour, and Grace for nearly five hours. The Joplin Globe reports Grace was pronounced dead late Friday at a Joplin Hospital. Her brother died Saturday night at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City.
McDonald County Emergency Management director Greg Sweeten says the ice was more than an inch thick in places but thinner near the center of the pond. Rescuers had to cut through the ice to find the children.
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Information from: The Joplin Globe, http://www.joplinglobe.com