Man Dies, 10-Year-Old Girl in Critical Condition After Falling in Ice Pond: 'He Died a Hero'

A man died on Saturday after becoming trapped in an ice pond while trying to save a child in Illinois.

Amanda Beals, the child's aunt, identified the victims as 10-year-old Ma'Lyiah White and 31-year-old Carlos Serafin to WCIA. White was in a critical condition on Sunday, Beals said on GoFundMe.

Coles County Coroner Ed Schniers told WTHI-TV10 the man had been identified as 31-year-old Carlos Serafin-Avalos, and an autopsy was due to take place on Tuesday.

At around 7:44 a.m. on Saturday, first responders were alerted to two people falling through ice in Charleston, Lincoln Fire Protection District Chief Frederick Reynolds said in a statement. At the scene, police confirmed there were two people under the ice.

People at the scene told officials that the first victim went on the ice-covered pond to rescue some dogs that had become stranded. When that individual fell through the ice, a family member went on the pond to rescue them, and also fell through, according to Reynolds.

Members of Charleston Fire Department went into the pond wearing protective cold water suits and launched an "aggressive search for the missing occupants," Reynolds said.

One person was rescued from the water at 8:06 a.m., and the second at 8:15 a.m. Both were taken to an ambulance on the scene and transported to Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Care, a hospital which is around a 10-minute drive away from the pond.

First responders also rescued three dogs from the pond. Reynolds said no first responders were injured during the incident.

On Saturday, Beals wrote on Facebook: "They did get Ma'Liyah's heart going again but unfortunately Carlos didn't make it. He died a hero. He loved these girls more than words can say."

On a GoFundMe page set up for funeral and medical expenses, Beals wrote that her nieces White and another identified only as Bailey were walking their six dogs on Saturday "as they do every morning."

Two small dogs ran onto the frozen pond, and White believed it was solid enough for her to stand on. "Unfortunately it wasn't," Beals wrote, saying that White fell into the pond and Bailey ran for help.

"Both their Papa (Bill Croy) and Abuelo [grandfather] (Carlos Serafin) ran out to the pond. Carlos jumped into the pond with a broom stick to try and save Ma'Lyiah but she was already under the ice and he also got sucked under."

As their age difference means it was unlikely that Serafin was White's biological grandfather, how the pair were related was unclear from reports.

Beals wrote: "Bill busted the ice to try and get to them both but couldn't find them. The dogs were also in the pond trying to rescue all. 911 was called and the dive and rescue team was able to recover both Ma'Lyiah and Carlos along with one dog that didn't make it Horchata.

"The local hospital worked for a long time on Carlos and tried everything possible but unfortunately he was under the ice for too long and was not able to be revived."

Doctors were able to restart White's heart, and she was later transported to another facility in critical condition, Beals said.

Beals said White had no brain activity other than seizures, and had been placed on a ventilator. She may need to be placed on another life support machine known as an ECMO, which pumps blood outside the body.

In an update on Sunday, Beals said White did not have any fractures. Her brain had started to swell, which she said is expected from this type of trauma.