A 5-year-old child was found dead this Sunday in a stream in Alsace after having clearly escaped the vigilance of his parents, we learned from the Colmar public prosecutor’s office. “The circumstances in which he found himself in this watercourse remain to be determined” but the intervention of a third party is excluded, according to the same source.
The tragedy occurred in Sélestat, in Bas-Rhin, around fifty km south of Strasbourg. The child was with his parents, originally from Mauritania, on a playground when he escaped their vigilance. According to the regional daily The Latest News from Alsacethe parents reportedly searched for him “nearly an hour in vain” before contacting the police.
Intense research
“Quite considerable” resources were then deployed, including dog teams, a helicopter “and police crews dispatched from Strasbourg”, it was specified. After intense searches, the child was found unresponsive shortly after 6 p.m. in a stream, several hundred meters from the play area, it was said.
He was transported to Strasbourg hospital in Hautepierre where he was declared dead, according to the prosecution. An investigation “in search of the causes of death” has been opened, it was further indicated.