LANSING - A two-year-old boy drowned after falling into a pond behind his family's home on Lansing's south side.

Lansing firefighters were the first on the scene around 11:30 a.m. at the home in the 6200 block of Grovenburg Road.

They found the boy about five feet from the shore in water over 4 feet deep.

"A firefighter was able to wade in, around the murky water, and felt the victim, and was able to pull him out and take him to the ambulance," said Lansing Police Sgt. Joe Brown. "They did a load and go, and they don't waste any time getting him to the hospital to give him immediate medical care."

But the boy died shortly after arriving at the hospital. Police said he was pronounced dead around noon.

Police say the boy was in the water for less than 10 minutes. They aren't sure yet how or why he was out there.

"Detectives are still talking with friends and families members to determine how that came to be," Sgt. Brown said. "We're in the early stages of this investigation, so I don't want to get ahead of myself. Right now it does not appear there was any foul play. It appears to be a tragic accident."

Lansing Police public information officer Robert Merrit told News 10 the parents were home at the time.

Crime Scene Investigators were collecting evidence for more than two-and-a-half hours and a dive team assisted as well.

Investigators said they found articles of clothing belonging to both a child and an adult near the pond. Police said it might belong
to a person who may have tried to help the boy.

The next door neighbor of more than 20 years who shares the pond in his backyard said this was his greatest fear.

"I've always had a lot of kids come back here, but I've always kept them off my land," said Steve Crumb. "Because I was always afraid something like this might happen."