MILWAUKEE — The bodies of two men who went into a rain-swollen drainage ditch in Milwaukee to try to save a 10-year-old boy have been recovered, officials said Thursday.
The discovery comes three days after the three people were swept into a tunnel that runs under a road, shortly after a storm dropped heavy rainfall. The body of Mohammed Roshidulcah, of Milwaukee, was recovered Tuesday about a mile and a half downstream from the tunnel’s exit.
The youngster ran into the ravine chasing after a soccer ball, police said.
The bodies of the child’s father and a family friend, both of whom followed the boy into the drainage ditch, were found Thursday several miles downstream of the tunnel. Divers, boats, people walking along the shore, drones and sonar equipment were used in the search, Milwaukee Fire Chief Aaron Lipski said.
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Lipski said the three victims were part of an “extremely tight-knit and very strong” community.
“Not any one of us can imagine what such a huge loss to this community must feel like," he said at a press conference Thursday.
The boy went into the treacherous water about 6 p.m. Monday and started to struggle, police said. His father jumped into the water and gave him a “bear hug” in an attempt to rescue him. When that proved unsuccessful, another adult then leaped in after them and attempted to create a “human chain” while holding on to something near the shore.
The second man lost his grip and the three were swept away by the current.
Photos: Remembering Wisconsin's deadliest tornado in 1899
New Richmond tornado 1899
Elevated view of New Richmond after the tornado hit on June 12, 1899. Many people are gathered around the railroad tracks and a few others are seen among the ruins of homes and businesses. The Willow River is visible in the foreground.
New Richmond tornado 1899
People stand in the rubble of the Ward S. Williams Co. stone block building after a deadly tornado hit New Richmond.
New Richmond tornado 1899
People working with the relief effort in the aftermath of a tornado in New Richmond in 1899. Boxes of supplies are piled near a man in the foreground, and a man holds a bundle in a cart parked on the left. In the background, people are walking among the debris.
New Richmond tornado 1899
A woman and her young daughter stand in a yard examining a house in the aftermath of the New Richmond tornado. The house has one entire side missing.
New Richmond tornado 1899
A small group of women and children observe the aftermath of the New Richmond tornado.
New Richmond tornado 1899
View over water, perhaps Hatfield Lake, of houses damaged and demolished in the New Richmond tornado. Floating at the edge of the lake near an eroded bank are numerous pieces of debris. A number of tents for the relief effort are on the left.
New Richmond tornado 1899
A group of people looks at the debris left by the New Richmond tornado from a covered horse-drawn carriage. In the foreground, the roof of a house lies on the ground.
New Richmond tornado 1899
A small group of men and women stand surrounded by the debris from the New Richmond tornado. Storm-damaged houses and relief workers are visible in the background.
New Richmond tornado 1899
The still smoldering foundation of a brick building continues to burn in the wake of a tornado that swept through New Richmond in 1899.
Front page of the Minneapolis Tribune on June 13, 1899
The front page of the Minneapolis Tribune on June 13, 1899, blares news of the deadly New Richmond tornado. New Richmond is about 42 miles northeast of Minneapolis.
New Richmond tornado 1899
Men near a heavily damaged home look at a tree that was stripped of its bark by the tornado that hit New Richmond in 1899. It also appears to have a piece of metal embedded in it.
New Richmond tornado 1899
An elevated view over water, possibly Hatfield Lake, shows damage to houses and property and people gathered in groups around town.
New Richmond tornado 1899
A crowd gathers amid debris left in the wake of a devastating tornado. Trees have been stripped of limbs and bar, and houses have been flattened.
New Richmond tornado 1899
Men work amid the rubble of lumber, bricks and stone left by the tornado.
New Richmond tornado 1899
Men work in the remains of a house that was demolished by the tornado that hit New Richmond in 1899.
Wisconsin State Journal front page June 13, 1899
The front page of the State Journal from June 13, 1899, recounts the story of the deadly tornado. The June 14 edition talked about the "line of funerals," with the dead carried to their graves in grocers' wagons.
