The body of a missing child was found Tuesday after he was swept into a Milwaukee drainage ditch, and authorities are continuing to search for two adults who tried to rescue him, officials said.
Milwaukee Fire Department Chief Aaron Lipski said the 10-year-old boy was found roughly a mile and a half from the spot where he appeared to slip into a ditch that leads to the Kinnickinnic River.
"This is horrible day," Lipski told reporters.
The boy, who was not identified, was seen by a "citizen hero" who alerted authorities, he said.
Rescue workers were still searching for two men, ages 34 and 37, who tried to rescue the boy. Lipski said earlier that survival was unlikely and that the search had shifted to a recovery operation, according to NBC affiliate WTMJ-TV of Milwaukee.
The boy was fell into the ditch after heavy rains, Milwaukee Police Captain Eric Pfeiffer said Monday. The child was playing and "unfortunately it went wrong," he said.
Milwaukee Fire Assistant Chief Dewayne Smoots said the water is deep and moving fast, posing a risk for the rescue teams. A team was not able to enter the tunnel Monday night because "we have no idea what was going on in that tunnel," he said.
"So it was hard for us to put people in there and go through the tunnel," Smoots said.
He said that debris can get trapped inside the tunnel and it's possible that the group got stuck on some of the debris. Smoots said aside from the tunnel, the entire drainage ditch was searched.
Police did not reveal the relationship between the three people but said they are familiar with each other.
Milwaukee was hit by a severe storm and torrential downpour on Monday that left streets flooded, according WTMJ.
