PIERRE, SD – The Hughes County Sheriff’s Office responded to a drowning death at Farm Island State Park near Pierre late Saturday afternoon.
At around 5:20 p.m. CDT Saturday, 911 Communications Officers received a report of a missing three year old child last seen near the water’s edge at Farm Island.
Sheriff’s Deputies, Pierre Police, Game, Fish & Parks, and State Troopers immediately responded to the area. The family of the missing child and nearby campers were already actively searching the area, and Pierre Fire Department Rescue and Dive Squads arrived with boats and divers to assist in the search.
At around 6 p.m. CDT, divers located the body of the missing child in the water approximately 20 feet from shore and in less than 4 feet of water.
The name of the victim is not being released. The family was camping at Farm Island in Pierre and visiting from La Plant, SD.
The search and recovery effort included the Hughes County Sheriff’s Office, State Game, Fish and Parks, Pierre Police Department, South Dakota Highway Patrol, Pierre Fire Department, Pierre Dive Squad, AMR Ambulance of Pierre, Hughes County Emergency Management, and the Hughes County Coroner’s Office.
