In a terrifying twist of fate, Florida became the scene of a heartbreaking event. When childhood joy turned into tragedy on Lauderdale-by-the-Sea beach in Fort Lauderdale. The noise of the waves and the laughter of two brothers, Sloan Mattingly, a 7-year-old girl, and her 9-year-old brother Maddox were mixing in that place. A typical scene of an afternoon of leisure and play.
Hailing from Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Mattinglys traveled to Florida looking for sun, sea and family time. Once they reached the strip of sand, The brothers dug a hole of considerable size, without foreseeing the danger that awaited right under their feet. The beach, which we usually see as a recreational area, suddenly became a scene of anguish when Sloan and Maddox’s game took a dramatic turn.
The tragic death of Sloan Mattingly.
That sandy soil, friendly to castles and pools, rebelled. A hole approximately 1.5 meters deep became a deadly trap. Leisure gave way to anguish when the walls of the pit collapsed, burying the life and laughter of the Mattinglys under a heavy gray blanket.. Maddox was the first to feel the cold embrace of the sand, buried up to his neck, but Sloan, the smallest, completely disappeared beneath the surface.
The looks of those present went from amusement to panic. The clock began to count down in a desperate race for survival. The children’s father, in a reflex act of paternal love, rushed to the scene, managing to rescue Maddox. While the community, both locals and first responders, did not hesitate to join the search for Sloan, digging with hands, shovels and hope.
Rescue attempt.
The air in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea was filled with the sound of sirens as rescuers made their entrance, battling the sand and the weather. Relying on support boards to contain the collapse, they struggled to get the children out. Unfortunately for Sloan, help came too late. After struggling for approximately 20 minutes under the sand, the little girl was extracted without vital signs..
In a race against time, both she and her brother were taken to Broward Health Medical Center. Efforts to revive Sloan were relentless, but finally, in a hospital room and surrounded by technology and strangers, she was pronounced dead.
Jason Mattingly, devastated by the loss of his little girl, found the strength to write a few lines on the family home improvement business’s Facebook, sharing his grief and asking for understanding in these times of immense sadness. The Broward Police Department reported that Maddox is hospitalized and his condition is stable, which brings a thin thread of relief to this family marked by tragedy.
