A 9-year-old Iowa boy is dead after he drowned in an icy pond behind his new family home on Saturday.
The tragic accident claimed the life of Aiden James-Harrison Smith whose body was discovered under the ice in the Waukee neighborhood west of Des Moines.
A neighbor called 911 immediately after they noticed a hole in the icy pond with a pair of shoes nearby.
Aiden’s grandfather said that the victim and his parents had only moved into the home a few weeks ago.
“From the vantage point of their house, you can’t see the pond until you walk right up on it,” he said.
“You have to be about 10 feet away from the pond before you did know that there’s a pond.”
Aiden was allowed to play in the area because of the many equipment and construction vehicles in the area. His mother could watch him playing from the backyard.
“His dad never knew that there was a pond back. Mom never knew that there was a pond back there,” the granddad added.
The grieving man revealed his last moments with Aiden, his best friend, as they both sat on a couch just 30 minutes before the tragedy.
“Um, told me that, you know, ‘Papa, I love you so much’. I said, ‘I love you too.’ And then, he slid out of the chair we were sharing.”
