Dad, uncle die after trying to save 7-year-old boy when boat capsizes, Ohio cops say

A 7-year-old boy was rescued when a boat capsized on an Ohio lake, but his dad and uncle died after trying to save him, according to police and media reports.

The boat flipped in a private pond in Bethel Township on Sunday, May 29, with the boy and his father on board, the Journal-News reported. First responders were dispatched around 4:30 p.m. for a report of a possible drowning, and the caller said a 7-year-old and two adults were struggling in the water, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office said.

“I need help, I don’t know what to do,” the 911 caller said, according to the Dayton Daily News. “I don’t want to lose my dad. I’m freaking out, I can’t lose my uncle.”

Responding deputies found the child screaming for help and the other two men struggling to stay afloat in the middle of the lake, according to the sheriff’s office.

Crews first got the boy out of the water, sheriff’s officials said. Then they pulled out the uncle, who WDTN reported swam out to the lake to assist.

Both were taken to a hospital, and the boy was treated and released. But his uncle, identified by the Journal-News as 30-year-old Sean Boling, died at the hospital.

The boy’s father, 29-year-old Nickolas Boling, was pulled out of the lake and died at the scene, the Daily News reported. Both men are from Dayton.

None of the victims were wearing life jackets, Bethel Township Fire Chief Jacob King said.

“All of the agencies that responded had excellent response times and we were able to pull the first victim out of the water remarkably quick,” King told WDTN. “If they had been wearing life jackets, it could’ve dramatically changed the outcome of this tragic accident. They are meant to buy responders time in helping keep you afloat.”

A cause of death for the Boling brothers has not been determined. A deputy who assisted in the water rescue, identified by the Daily News as Vaughn Apel, was hospitalized for exhaustion and released.

Bethel Township is about 70 miles northeast of Cincinnati.

This story was originally published June 1, 2022 at 12:34 PM with the headline "Dad, uncle die after trying to save 7-year-old boy when boat capsizes, Ohio cops say."