5-Year-Old Girl in Critical Condition After Being Swept into Storm Drain: ‘Praying for a Miracle’

A 5-year-old Florida girl is in critical condition after being swept into a storm drain, authorities said.

The incident happened after a water main break on Bahia Vista Street in Sarasota around 6 p.m. local time on Sunday, Aug. 24, according to WWSB, WTVT, and WFTS.

Officials told the outlets that the child had been playing near a culvert when the water main broke. The sudden surge of water created a powerful current that pulled her into the storm drain. Emergency crews located her about 100 yards from where she had been swept in, WWSB reported.

She was rushed to Sarasota Memorial Hospital for treatment.

In a statement to PEOPLE, Sarasota County Emergency Service said: “Sarasota County Fire Department responded to a rescue in the 5400 block of Bahia Vista St. The call came in around 6:14 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 24. One patient was rescued and transported to Sarasota Memorial Hospital.”

By 10 a.m. Monday, Aug. 25, Sarasota County Public Utilities contractors had worked through the night to repair the section of Bahia Vista Street damaged by the break.

Sarasota County Fire Department Assistant Chief Tim Dorsey told WWSB that the situation was considered a “high-risk” rescue but said crews were able to locate the girl quickly after mapping out a search area.

“They started resuscitative efforts and transported the child to a local hospital,” he explained, adding that firefighters were in the “right place, right time” to respond so quickly, according to WTVT.

The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the case.

Neighbors described the event as heartbreaking. One told WWSB, “I can’t fathom what they are going through right now. We are really praying, just really devastated for the family, but really praying for a miracle.”

Another neighbor said his daughter was friends with the girl and could have been playing nearby if not for different plans that evening. “Just devastating,” he said.

Tom McGee, another resident, told WTVT that his doorbell camera captured emergency responders rushing to the scene. “I saw the ambulance come up with a stretcher, and they went to where the water main break was, and then they all went running down the street,” he recalled.

A large hole was left in the roadway after the break. Crews began repairing the damage Monday, while the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office reopened part of the street and warned drivers to “use caution when traveling near this area.”