Officials: 12-Year-Old Georgia Boy Drowns Trying to Help Struggling Child

Panorama of Lake Sinclair in Georgia, USA
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Authorities have found the body of a 12-year-old boy from Georgia who drowned in a lake while trying to help a younger child in distress in the water.

The boy, identified as Traetorin Mitchell, was at Lake Sinclair with his family Sunday when he noticed a younger child struggling to stay afloat in the water, according to the Associated Press.

The child, who was unidentified, was wearing a life jacket but having trouble swimming back to the bank, the Macon Telegraph reported.

Traetorin dove into the lake and pushed the child to shore, but then went underwater and never came back up for air, officials said.

Crews searched the lake for Traetorin using sonar technology Sunday evening, and authorities were able to retrieve his body from the water shortly before 11:00 a.m. Monday.

The boy’s body was sent to the medical examiner for an autopsy.

Another person also drowned at Lake Sinclair in 2018. The victim was a bachelor party guest from New Jersey who tried to hold his breath underwater in a competition but never resurfaced.

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